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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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 · court · file · chip · hand · jam · bowl · branch

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. hand — help
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. hand — in cards
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. jam — in traffic
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. file — a document
  9. court — of law
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. rule — a law
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. chip — to eat
  15. file — a line of people
  16. file — a tool
  17. court — for sport
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. court — of a king
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. rule — government
  22. bowl — a dish
  23. branch — a division
  24. chip — for betting

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