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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 · cabinet · fine · deal · hand · field · spell · branch

  1. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  10. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. hand — help
  3. spell — magic
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. hand — in cards
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. deal — to handle
  10. fine — high quality
  11. bound — tied together
  12. field — farmland
  13. fine — all right
  14. spell — letters
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. branch — a division
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. deal — an agreement
  19. field — for sport
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. spell — a short time
  22. bound — obliged
  23. field — a subject
  24. bound — certain

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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