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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: branch · rule · tear · field · straw · cap · rest · tube

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. field — for sport
  3. cap — of ice
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. tube — the underground
  6. rest — a break
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. tear — from crying
  10. branch — a division
  11. field — a subject
  12. rule — government
  13. cap — a lid
  14. tube — a container
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. tear — to rip
  17. tear — from crying
  18. rest — what's left
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. field — farmland
  21. cap — a hat
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. rule — a law
  24. straw — dry grass

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