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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. prune — to trim
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. branch — a division
  6. band — a music group
  7. mug — to rob
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. object — to protest
  10. mug — a face
  11. object — an aim
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. mug — a cup
  14. band — a ring
  15. stem — to come from
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. wound — an injury
  18. object — a thing
  19. wound — an injury
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. stem — a stem cell

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