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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: prune · bound · chip · march · bark · arm · press · rule

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. My father caught me by the ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. bound — certain
  3. prune — to trim
  4. march — the month
  5. march — the month
  6. bound — obliged
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. chip — in a computer
  9. march — music
  10. prune — to trim
  11. press — newspapers
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. chip — to eat
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. rule — a law
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. press — a publisher
  19. bark — to shout
  20. press — to push
  21. chip — for betting
  22. arm — part of the body
  23. rule — government
  24. bound — tied together

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