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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: rule · date · rest · trunk · fork · scale · squash · ground

  1. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. date — the fruit
  2. rest — what's left
  3. squash — the sport
  4. scale — size or range
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. rest — a break
  9. rule — government
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. rest — what's left
  14. ground — the earth
  15. fork — in a road
  16. squash — to crush
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. ground — crushed
  20. rule — a law
  21. fork — to eat with
  22. ground — a position
  23. scale — in music
  24. fork — a garden tool

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