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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 116 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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. wind — moving air
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. file — a line of people
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. file — a tool
  8. staff — employees
  9. file — a document
  10. track — to keep track
  11. staff — a stick
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. track — a path
  15. wind — moving air
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. prune — to trim
  18. pit — in a race
  19. pound — a weight
  20. staff — employees
  21. prune — to trim
  22. track — a song
  23. pit — a hole
  24. wind — to turn a key

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