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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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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. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. stem — of a plant
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. game — a match
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. rule — government
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. game — wild animals
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. branch — a division
  14. band — a ring
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. band — a music group
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. cell — a phone
  19. capital — money
  20. rule — a law
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. capital — a city
  23. cell — in biology
  24. stem — to come from

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