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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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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: pit · spring · race · rule · rash · squash · patient · branch

  1. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. branch — a division
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. spring — the season
  6. spring — of water
  7. pit — in a race
  8. race — a contest
  9. squash — to crush
  10. rash — a series
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. race — humankind
  15. rule — government
  16. rash — hasty
  17. spring — a coil
  18. rule — a law
  19. squash — the sport
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. race — the arms race
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. pit — a hole
  24. patient — a sick person

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