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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  10. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. tear — from crying
  4. land — to come down
  5. bound — certain
  6. bound — obliged
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. bound — tied together
  9. land — a country
  10. press — newspapers
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. bulb — for light
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. branch — a division
  16. press — to push
  17. cell — a phone
  18. tear — from crying
  19. land — ground
  20. content — happy
  21. tear — to rip
  22. bulb — for light
  23. press — a publisher
  24. cell — in biology

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