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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: kid · clip · pound · bark · ruler · lash · rule · branch

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. pound — a weight
  6. clip — a video
  7. kid — to tease
  8. ruler — a monarch
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. clip — to cut
  12. clip — for paper
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. rule — a law
  21. pound — for dogs
  22. kid — child
  23. rule — government
  24. bark — to shout

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