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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 116 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: rock · press · game · bulb · bound · field · branch · saw

  1. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. press — a publisher
  2. bulb — for light
  3. bulb — for light
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. bound — tied together
  6. saw — the tool
  7. press — to push
  8. field — farmland
  9. game — a match
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. rock — music
  13. rock — a stone
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. bound — obliged
  16. field — for sport
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. saw — the tool
  19. field — a subject
  20. bound — certain
  21. game — wild animals
  22. branch — a division
  23. press — newspapers
  24. bulb — of a plant

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