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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: root · wound · charge · drill · tear · branch · squash · date

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. branch — a division
  4. charge — a price
  5. wound — an injury
  6. drill — army training
  7. root — of a plant
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. root — the cause
  10. tear — to rip
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. wound — an injury
  13. drill — a practice
  14. charge — electricity
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. tear — from crying
  17. root — of a word
  18. drill — the tool
  19. squash — to crush
  20. charge — in control
  21. date — the fruit
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. tear — from crying
  24. date — on the calendar

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