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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 120 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: pitcher · court · press · nail · wax · root · branch · bound

  1. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  5. The ball is in your ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. The ________________ went through the wall.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Did you ________________ the button?
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. bound — tied together
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. root — of a word
  5. court — for sport
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. court — of law
  8. press — a publisher
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. wax — for sculpting
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. court — of a king
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. branch — a division
  16. press — to push
  17. bound — obliged
  18. press — newspapers
  19. root — the cause
  20. root — of a plant
  21. wax — to grow
  22. bound — certain
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. wax — in the ear

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