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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. prune — to trim
  3. branch — a division
  4. prune — to trim
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. degree — temperature
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. net — in sport
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. degree — from a university
  12. net — after costs
  13. net — for catching
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. degree — an amount

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