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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: wound · spring · branch · lean · kid · dip · date · present

  1. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  12. Have you settled on a ________________?
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. lean — to bend
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  6. present — there
  7. wound — an injury
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. spring — the season
  10. kid — to tease
  11. date — the fruit
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. dip — to sink
  15. present — the time now
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. spring — a coil
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. present — a gift
  21. spring — of water
  22. kid — child
  23. branch — a division
  24. lean — thin

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