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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: present · row · band · cell · bark · rule

  1. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  2. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. band — a rubber band
  2. bark — of a tree
  3. present — a gift
  4. present — the time now
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. cell — a phone
  8. band — a music group
  9. present — there
  10. rule — government
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. row — to paddle
  13. cell — in biology
  14. rule — a law
  15. bark — to shout
  16. band — a ring
  17. row — a line
  18. bark — a dog's sound

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