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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: cold · racket · coach · tear · kick · rule · branch · drill

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. cold — the Cold War
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. tear — to rip
  5. rule — government
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. kick — a thrill
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. branch — a division
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. drill — the tool
  16. rule — a law
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. drill — a practice
  19. tear — from crying
  20. drill — army training
  21. coach — pulled by horses
  22. cold — not warm
  23. tear — from crying
  24. kick — in football

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