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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. My father caught me by the ________________.
  18. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. branch — a division
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. present — a gift
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. present — the time now
  7. spring — of water
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. drill — the tool
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. spring — the season
  12. drill — a practice
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. prune — to trim
  15. spring — a coil
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. drill — army training
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. present — there
  24. arm — a part of something

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