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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 who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. fall — the season
  3. field — farmland
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. field — a subject
  6. bound — obliged
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. branch — a division
  9. kid — to tease
  10. bound — certain
  11. field — for sport
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. bank — for money
  14. fall — to drop
  15. bank — for money
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. tube — the underground
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. bank — of a river
  22. kid — child
  23. tube — a container
  24. bound — tied together

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