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

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. bound — certain
  3. cap — a hat
  4. branch — a division
  5. spring — a coil
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. spring — the season
  9. cap — of ice
  10. bat — the animal
  11. bulb — for light
  12. cap — a lid
  13. can — a tin
  14. can — to be able to
  15. spring — of water
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. bat — for baseball
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bound — obliged
  20. chest — a box
  21. chest — of your body
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. bound — tied together
  24. chest — of your body

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