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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 116 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: object · degree · wax · cell · bound · branch · prune · squash

  1. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  5. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the vegetable
  2. object — to protest
  3. object — an aim
  4. bound — tied together
  5. wax — to grow
  6. degree — from a university
  7. bound — obliged
  8. prune — to trim
  9. bound — certain
  10. prune — to trim
  11. squash — to crush
  12. cell — a phone
  13. object — a thing
  14. cell — in biology
  15. branch — a division
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. degree — temperature
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. degree — an amount
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. squash — the sport
  24. cell — in a prison

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