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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: band · bound · firm · court · saw · hide · branch · staff

  1. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. band — a music group
  4. firm — steady
  5. staff — employees
  6. bound — certain
  7. court — of a king
  8. saw — the tool
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. staff — a stick
  11. band — a ring
  12. court — of law
  13. staff — employees
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. branch — a division
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. court — for sport
  20. firm — a company
  21. firm — decided
  22. bound — tied together
  23. saw — the tool
  24. bound — obliged

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