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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  19. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. branch — a division
  3. land — to come down
  4. bank — for money
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. rule — a law
  7. rule — government
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. cell — in biology
  11. date — the fruit
  12. land — a country
  13. hand — help
  14. land — ground
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. bank — for money
  19. jam — in traffic
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. jam — to spread on bread
  22. cell — a phone
  23. rule — to rule out
  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