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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: rule · pit · mate · game · branch · bark · content · wind

  1. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. rule — government
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. wind — moving air
  7. content — happy
  8. pit — a hole
  9. game — a match
  10. wind — moving air
  11. game — wild animals
  12. mate — a partner
  13. rule — a law
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. pit — in a race
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. mate — a friend
  20. bark — to shout
  21. branch — a division
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. content — the amount
  24. bark — of a tree

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