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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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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. chest — of your body
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. prune — to trim
  6. prune — to trim
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. saw — the tool
  9. wake — a trail
  10. branch — a division
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. chest — of your body
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. track — to keep track
  17. chest — a box
  18. saw — the tool
  19. bore — to drill
  20. bore — to tire
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. track — a path
  23. track — a song
  24. branch — of a bank

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