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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 · branch · rest · wound · tear · straw · club · kick

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. rest — a break
  3. wound — an injury
  4. rule — government
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. tear — from crying
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. club — for dancing
  9. club — a group
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. club — for golf
  12. tear — from crying
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. rule — a law
  15. tear — to rip
  16. branch — a division
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. rest — what's left
  20. kick — with a leg
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. kick — in football
  24. rest — what's left

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