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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: march · rash · hide · cap · bulb · bound · tear · branch

  1. That was ________________ to happen.
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — certain
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. rash — a series
  4. cap — a hat
  5. hide — animal skin
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. cap — a lid
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. march — the month
  10. rash — hasty
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. tear — from crying
  13. march — music
  14. cap — of ice
  15. bound — tied together
  16. tear — to rip
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. tear — from crying
  19. march — the month
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bound — obliged
  24. branch — a division

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