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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 116 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: kid · mate · content · fork · branch · bear · rule · cabinet

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  7. Have you found your soul ________________?
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. fork — a garden tool
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. content — happy
  7. mate — a partner
  8. content — the amount
  9. rule — government
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. branch — a division
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. kid — to tease
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. mate — to breed
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. fork — in a road
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. rule — a law
  21. bear — the animal
  22. mate — a friend
  23. bear — the animal
  24. fork — to eat with

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