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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: spell · field · date · bay · branch · bound · cell · mug

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. spell — letters
  3. field — for sport
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. spell — a short time
  6. field — farmland
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. spell — magic
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. mug — a cup
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. bound — obliged
  14. mug — to rob
  15. cell — a phone
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. bound — certain
  18. mug — a face
  19. date — the fruit
  20. cell — in biology
  21. field — a subject
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. branch — a division
  24. branch — of a bank

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