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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: file · hand · stand · face · rule · cell · calf · branch

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — government
  2. face — part of the head
  3. hand — help
  4. rule — a law
  5. cell — in biology
  6. file — a line of people
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. branch — a division
  12. cell — a phone
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. file — a tool
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. face — to point toward
  17. stand — to bear
  18. file — a document
  19. hand — in cards
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. face — to confront
  23. stand — for spectators
  24. rule — to rule out

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