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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: safe · rash · rush · branch · wound · rule · fork · degree

  1. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. safe — out of danger
  2. rule — a law
  3. rule — government
  4. degree — an amount
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. rush — hurry
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. wound — an injury
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. fork — in a road
  13. rash — hasty
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. branch — a division
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. degree — temperature
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. degree — from a university
  20. rash — a series
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. wound — an injury
  24. rush — a thrill

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