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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 · squash · kick · cue · rule · present · bark · bank

  1. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  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. rule — government
  2. cold — not warm
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. kick — in football
  7. present — there
  8. squash — to crush
  9. squash — the sport
  10. cue — a hint
  11. present — the time now
  12. present — a gift
  13. cue — a signal
  14. bank — of a river
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. bank — for money
  17. cue — for pool
  18. cold — an illness
  19. rule — a law
  20. bank — for money
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. bark — to shout
  23. cold — the Cold War
  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