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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. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sales talk
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. tear — from crying
  4. fall — to drop
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. rule — government
  7. fork — to eat with
  8. tube — the underground
  9. fall — the season
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. tear — from crying
  15. fork — in a road
  16. sharp — clever
  17. rule — a law
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. pitch — completely
  20. branch — a division
  21. tube — a container
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. tear — to rip
  24. fall — to drop

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