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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: club · branch · squash · rule · bark · bank · fall · spring

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  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. bark — of a tree
  2. rule — government
  3. spring — of water
  4. spring — the season
  5. bank — for money
  6. spring — a coil
  7. squash — the sport
  8. fall — to drop
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. squash — to crush
  12. fall — to drop
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. bank — of a river
  15. rule — a law
  16. club — for dancing
  17. bank — for money
  18. club — a group
  19. branch — a division
  20. club — for golf
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. fall — the season
  23. bark — to shout
  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