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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: rule · track · bass · branch · bulb · lie · rest · cell

  1. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — low music
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. branch — a division
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. track — to keep track
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. rule — a law
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. cell — in biology
  14. lie — to recline
  15. bass — the fish
  16. rest — what's left
  17. cell — a phone
  18. rest — a break
  19. bulb — for light
  20. rule — government
  21. track — a song
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. rest — what's left
  24. track — a path

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