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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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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: deal · saw · sharp · branch · rule · cue · bowl · prune

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  13. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. rule — government
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. rule — a law
  6. prune — to trim
  7. saw — the tool
  8. sharp — clever
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. cue — for pool
  12. cue — a signal
  13. cue — a hint
  14. branch — a division
  15. prune — to trim
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. deal — to handle
  23. saw — the tool
  24. rule — to rule out

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