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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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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: toast · content · branch · deal · sharp · wake · rule · spring

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. rule — government
  3. branch — a division
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. toast — a drink to someone
  6. spring — the season
  7. spring — a coil
  8. toast — the most admired
  9. content — happy
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. toast — bread
  13. deal — to handle
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. rule — a law
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. sharp — clever
  22. content — the amount
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. wake — a trail

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