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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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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: racket · rule · row · current · last · leaves · land · branch

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. rule — a law
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. current — electric
  7. land — to come down
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. land — ground
  10. last — to go on
  11. current — happening now
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. row — a line
  14. last — final
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. last — finally
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. rule — government
  20. row — to paddle
  21. land — a country
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. current — of water
  24. branch — a division

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