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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: cold · pass · branch · rule · rush · spring · saw · bowl

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. She's very handy with a ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. spring — of water
  3. rush — hurry
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. pass — a permit
  7. rule — government
  8. pass — to succeed
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. rule — a law
  11. spring — a coil
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. spring — the season
  16. saw — the tool
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. cold — an illness
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. cold — not warm
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. saw — the tool
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. bowl — to roll

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