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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: bound · wax · bark · club · leaves · branch · object · game

  1. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. game — a match
  3. club — a group
  4. bound — tied together
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. object — an aim
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. wax — to grow
  9. bound — certain
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. game — wild animals
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. bark — of a tree
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. bark — to shout
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. branch — a division
  19. club — for golf
  20. club — for dancing
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. object — to protest
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. object — a thing

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