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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: press · wake · rule · bound · spring · branch · vault · staff

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. staff — employees
  3. vault — a safe
  4. spring — a coil
  5. rule — government
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. wake — a trail
  10. press — a publisher
  11. staff — a stick
  12. press — newspapers
  13. press — to push
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. bound — obliged
  16. bound — tied together
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. branch — a division
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. spring — of water
  21. staff — employees
  22. spring — the season
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. rule — a law

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