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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: firm · bass · bark · rule · fan · branch · roll · last

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. roll — a list
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. firm — decided
  5. rule — government
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. bark — to shout
  9. last — final
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. firm — steady
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. firm — a company
  15. bass — the fish
  16. branch — a division
  17. roll — a cake
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. bass — low music
  20. last — finally
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. last — to go on
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. rule — a law

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