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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. mug — to rob
  4. file — a line of people
  5. snap — to click
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. stock — goods
  8. file — a tool
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. branch — a division
  11. bat — for baseball
  12. mine — for digging
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. stock — shares
  17. rule — a law
  18. mug — a cup
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. file — a document
  22. bat — the animal
  23. rule — government
  24. mug — a face

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