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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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. dip — to sink
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. branch — a division
  7. bound — certain
  8. root — the cause
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. bound — tied together
  13. root — of a plant
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. prune — to trim
  16. prune — to trim
  17. root — of a word
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bass — low music
  21. mine — for digging
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bass — the fish

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