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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. The ball is in your ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. race — humankind
  3. deal — a big deal
  4. bound — obliged
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. court — for sport
  8. field — farmland
  9. spring — of water
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. branch — a division
  12. court — of a king
  13. bound — tied together
  14. spring — a coil
  15. deal — to handle
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. race — the arms race
  19. race — a contest
  20. spring — the season
  21. bound — certain
  22. court — of law
  23. field — for sport
  24. field — a subject

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