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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: court · bound · bulb · band · bank · degree · last · branch

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. bound — obliged
  4. bank — for money
  5. band — a ring
  6. bound — tied together
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. bulb — for light
  9. last — finally
  10. court — of law
  11. court — for sport
  12. degree — temperature
  13. degree — an amount
  14. court — of a king
  15. bank — of a river
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. bound — certain
  19. last — final
  20. band — a music group
  21. degree — from a university
  22. last — to go on
  23. bank — for money
  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