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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: hand · ruler · tube · straw · tear · rule · branch · hide

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. tube — in a tire
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. tear — from crying
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. tube — the underground
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. branch — a division
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. hand — help
  16. tear — to rip
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. tube — a container
  20. rule — a law
  21. ruler — for measuring
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. hand — in cards
  24. tear — from crying

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