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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. pop — to visit
  3. lean — thin
  4. pop — soda
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. lean — to rest against
  7. ground — crushed
  8. lean — to bend
  9. branch — a division
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. bound — obliged
  13. firm — a company
  14. ground — a position
  15. cold — an illness
  16. firm — steady
  17. ground — the earth
  18. bound — certain
  19. pop — music
  20. stem — to come from
  21. firm — decided
  22. cold — not warm
  23. bound — tied together
  24. stem — a stem cell

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