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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: stick · tear · rule · hide · branch · roll · swing · row

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. rule — a law
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. rule — government
  7. swing — music
  8. tear — from crying
  9. roll — a cake
  10. roll — a list
  11. swing — in golf
  12. row — a line
  13. tear — to rip
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. swing — to play on
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. row — to paddle
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. tear — from crying
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. branch — a division
  24. row — a quarrel

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