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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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Word bank
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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: stock · safe · capital · bat · branch · rule · racket · prune

  1. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. The ________________ market has crashed.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. stock — shares
  3. stock — goods
  4. prune — to trim
  5. rule — government
  6. safe — out of danger
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. prune — to trim
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. bat — the animal
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. rule — a law
  14. capital — money
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. capital — a city
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. branch — a division
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. racket — for tennis

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