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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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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 · game · cap · date · stick · club · branch · lean

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. cap — a hat
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. bound — obliged
  6. bound — tied together
  7. game — a match
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. bound — certain
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. game — wild animals
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. cap — of ice
  14. club — for golf
  15. lean — thin
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. cap — a lid
  18. lean — to bend
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. club — for dancing
  21. game — a kind of play
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. branch — a division
  24. date — the fruit

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