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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: cell · rest · lie · bark · cold · rule · stock · trunk

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  10. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. The ________________ market has crashed.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. cold — not warm
  4. rest — what's left
  5. rule — a law
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. stock — goods
  11. rest — a break
  12. lie — to recline
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. rule — government
  15. rest — what's left
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. stock — shares
  20. bark — to shout
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. cold — an illness
  23. cell — in biology
  24. cell — a phone

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