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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. rule — a law
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. rule — government
  8. rest — what's left
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. cell — a phone
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. object — to protest
  13. bark — to shout
  14. rest — what's left
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. game — wild animals
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. hand — help
  19. game — a match
  20. branch — a division
  21. object — an aim
  22. rest — a break
  23. object — a thing
  24. hand — in cards

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