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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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. The King held a masked ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. fine — all right
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. cell — a phone
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. club — for golf
  7. ball — a dance
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — to trim
  10. cell — in biology
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. club — for dancing
  13. branch — a division
  14. rule — government
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. rule — a law
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — moving air
  20. ball — a great time
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. club — a group
  23. fine — high quality
  24. branch — of a tree

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