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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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Word bank
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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: rush · rule · face · row · scale · current · object · bat

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. object — a thing
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. bat — the animal
  5. rule — government
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. rush — hurry
  8. current — happening now
  9. face — to confront
  10. scale — in music
  11. rule — a law
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. face — to point toward
  14. current — electric
  15. face — part of the head
  16. object — an aim
  17. scale — size or range
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. current — of water
  20. row — to paddle
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. row — a line
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. rush — to hurry

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