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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. bank — of a river
  5. tear — to rip
  6. mine — for digging
  7. scale — in music
  8. shower — to wash
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. prune — to trim
  12. shower — rain
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bound — certain
  16. bank — for money
  17. bank — for money
  18. tear — from crying
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. fall — the season
  21. bound — tied together
  22. tear — from crying
  23. prune — to trim
  24. scale — size or range

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