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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: rule · last · nail · degree · bear · board · rest · straw

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. degree — an amount
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. board — a committee
  5. degree — from a university
  6. rule — government
  7. last — to go on
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. board — a flat piece
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. bear — the animal
  12. board — to get on
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. degree — temperature
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. rest — a break
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. rule — a law
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. rest — what's left
  21. last — final
  22. rest — what's left
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. bear — the animal

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com