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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: rash · bear · pound · rule · clip · mate · branch · wake

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. clip — to cut
  3. clip — for paper
  4. mate — to breed
  5. branch — a division
  6. bear — the animal
  7. rash — a series
  8. bear — the animal
  9. clip — a video
  10. pound — a weight
  11. rule — government
  12. wake — a trail
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. rule — a law
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. mate — a partner
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. mate — a friend
  21. rash — hasty
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. pound — to hit hard

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