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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 120 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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. The tickets are free of ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. rule — government
  4. file — a line of people
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rule — a law
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. branch — a division
  10. pop — to visit
  11. charge — a price
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. rest — a break
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. pop — music
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. rest — what's left
  19. charge — electricity
  20. charge — in control
  21. file — a document
  22. file — a tool
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. trunk — 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