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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. wake — a trail
  6. spring — the season
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. capital — money
  9. prune — to trim
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. bound — tied together
  12. branch — a division
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. spring — of water
  15. lie — to recline
  16. prune — to trim
  17. bound — obliged
  18. capital — a city
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. bound — certain
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. snap — to click
  24. capital — a big letter

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