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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 120 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: root · leaves · court · snap · hand · bark · rule · band

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. rule — a law
  6. band — a ring
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. rule — government
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. snap — to click
  13. root — of a plant
  14. hand — in cards
  15. hand — help
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. band — a music group
  18. court — of a king
  19. court — for sport
  20. root — the cause
  21. court — of law
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. root — of a word
  24. bark — to shout

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