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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: tear · ruler · branch · suit · leaves · cold · court · rash

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. The ball is in your ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  19. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. tear — to rip
  5. cold — an illness
  6. rash — hasty
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. tear — from crying
  9. cold — not warm
  10. court — for sport
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. rash — a series
  13. suit — in cards
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. branch — a division
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. court — of a king
  18. suit — clothes
  19. ruler — a monarch
  20. suit — to fit
  21. tear — from crying
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. cold — the Cold War

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