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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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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 · drill · band · snap · stem · lean · bound · branch

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  21. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  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 — tied together
  2. stem — to come from
  3. snap — to click
  4. object — an aim
  5. lean — thin
  6. band — a ring
  7. object — a thing
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. band — a music group
  10. lean — to bend
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. bound — certain
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. object — to protest
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. drill — the tool
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. lean — to rest against
  21. drill — army training
  22. drill — a practice
  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