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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 · lean · branch · squash · drill · degree · row · lie

  1. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. drill — a practice
  3. branch — a division
  4. drill — the tool
  5. lean — thin
  6. drill — army training
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. squash — the vegetable
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. squash — to crush
  12. squash — the sport
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. degree — an amount
  15. lean — to bend
  16. degree — temperature
  17. degree — from a university
  18. row — to paddle
  19. bound — obliged
  20. bound — certain
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. row — a line
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. bound — tied together

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