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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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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: bound · mug · cabinet · fall · squash · tear · branch · trunk

  1. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  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. branch — of a bank
  2. tear — from crying
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. fall — to drop
  6. tear — to rip
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. branch — a division
  9. bound — certain
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. squash — the sport
  12. mug — a face
  13. mug — a cup
  14. fall — the season
  15. fall — to drop
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. mug — to rob
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. bound — obliged
  21. tear — from crying
  22. bound — tied together
  23. squash — to crush
  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