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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. rash — a series
  3. band — a rubber band
  4. branch — a division
  5. rule — a law
  6. bark — to shout
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. rule — government
  10. rash — hasty
  11. land — ground
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. race — humankind
  14. race — a contest
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. band — a music group
  18. band — a ring
  19. land — to come down
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. race — the arms race
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. land — a country
  24. cabinet — ministers

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