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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. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  10. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. prune — to trim
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. bound — tied together
  6. date — the fruit
  7. scale — size or range
  8. bulb — for light
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. straw — to clutch at straws
  11. squash — to crush
  12. scale — in music
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. bound — obliged
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. bulb — for light
  18. squash — the sport
  19. branch — a division
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. prune — to trim
  24. scale — for weighing

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