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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: branch · kid · bound · roll · current · object · content · lean

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. kid — to tease
  3. current — electric
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. bound — tied together
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. object — a thing
  9. kid — child
  10. current — of water
  11. roll — a cake
  12. content — happy
  13. lean — to bend
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. content — the amount
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. object — to protest
  19. bound — obliged
  20. lean — thin
  21. current — happening now
  22. bound — certain
  23. object — an aim
  24. branch — a division

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