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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. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  2. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — completely
  2. mark — to pay attention
  3. file — a tool
  4. branch — a division
  5. squash — the sport
  6. prune — to trim
  7. craft — a skill
  8. content — the amount
  9. craft — boats
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. squash — to crush
  12. pitch — a sales talk
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. file — a document
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. mark — a trace
  17. content — happy
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. file — a line of people
  20. mark — a grade
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. prune — to trim

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