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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: wound · spring · bank · key · snap · cell · bulb · branch

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. spring — a coil
  4. bulb — for light
  5. cell — in biology
  6. bank — of a river
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. cell — a phone
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. key — for a lock
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. bulb — for light
  14. wound — an injury
  15. key — in music
  16. branch — a division
  17. spring — of water
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. bank — for money
  20. spring — the season
  21. bank — for money
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. wound — an injury
  24. key — the most important part

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