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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 120 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: cell · rule · root · tube · scale · chest · branch · cold

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. cell — in biology
  3. root — of a word
  4. rule — a law
  5. chest — a box
  6. scale — size or range
  7. rule — government
  8. tube — a container
  9. root — of a plant
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. cold — not warm
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. cell — a phone
  14. root — the cause
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. tube — the underground
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. chest — of your body
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. cold — an illness
  22. chest — of your body
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. scale — in music

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