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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — a law
  2. prune — to trim
  3. land — a country
  4. rest — a break
  5. land — ground
  6. bark — to shout
  7. bank — for money
  8. spring — the season
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. land — to come down
  11. spring — a coil
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. prune — to trim
  16. bank — of a river
  17. rest — what's left
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bank — for money
  20. rest — what's left
  21. spring — of water
  22. pass — a permit
  23. rule — government
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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