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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. rule — government
  4. row — to paddle
  5. land — ground
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. bat — the animal
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. rule — a law
  10. last — final
  11. last — finally
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. land — to come down
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. land — a country
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. last — to go on
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. row — a line
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. rule — to rule out

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