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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 120 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 reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. mine — for digging
  3. bound — obliged
  4. content — the amount
  5. branch — a division
  6. net — for catching
  7. fall — to drop
  8. net — after costs
  9. degree — temperature
  10. row — to paddle
  11. row — a line
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. degree — from a university
  14. bound — certain
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. fall — to drop
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. fall — the season
  19. content — happy
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. degree — an amount
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. net — in sport

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