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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: rest · scale · rule · shower · key · arm · pound · wind

  1. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. key — the most important part
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. rule — a law
  4. scale — size or range
  5. wind — moving air
  6. shower — a meteor shower
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. key — in music
  9. shower — to wash
  10. rule — government
  11. rest — what's left
  12. key — for a lock
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. shower — rain
  16. scale — in music
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. rest — what's left
  19. pound — a weight
  20. pound — for dogs
  21. rest — a break
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. wind — moving air

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