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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 116 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: clip · lash · rest · cap · bark · branch · rule · fall

  1. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. cap — a lid
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. fall — to drop
  5. rest — what's left
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. fall — the season
  8. rest — a break
  9. rule — a law
  10. cap — of ice
  11. rest — what's left
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. fall — to drop
  14. cap — a hat
  15. branch — a division
  16. rule — government
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. clip — for paper
  19. bark — to shout
  20. clip — to cut
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. clip — a video

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