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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: stock · racket · temple · band · fork · rule · prune · lie

  1. When was this ________________ built?
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — a place of worship
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. rule — a law
  4. band — a music group
  5. stock — a soup base
  6. prune — to trim
  7. band — a ring
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. rule — government
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. lie — to recline
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. stock — goods
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. fork — in a road
  22. prune — to trim
  23. stock — shares
  24. racket — for tennis

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