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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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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: field · rule · band · bowl · firm · lie · branch · land

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. field — a subject
  4. band — a music group
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. field — farmland
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. firm — decided
  11. branch — a division
  12. rule — government
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. field — for sport
  15. firm — steady
  16. land — a country
  17. rule — a law
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. lie — to recline
  20. land — to come down
  21. firm — a company
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. land — ground
  24. band — a ring

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