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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: ground · court · bear · cell · bark · band · branch · rule

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. court — of law
  4. band — a music group
  5. branch — a division
  6. court — of a king
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. cell — a phone
  12. bear — the animal
  13. ground — crushed
  14. rule — a law
  15. ground — a position
  16. bear — the animal
  17. rule — government
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bark — to shout
  20. court — for sport
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. band — a ring
  24. cell — in biology

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