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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: present · bound · cell · dip · field · kick · branch · chair

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. kick — in football
  4. bound — obliged
  5. cell — a phone
  6. dip — to sink
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. dip — to dunk
  10. present — a gift
  11. bound — certain
  12. branch — a division
  13. cell — in biology
  14. chair — a leader
  15. bound — tied together
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. field — farmland
  18. field — for sport
  19. present — there
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. field — a subject
  23. present — the time now
  24. branch — of a tree

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