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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. can — a tin
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. branch — a division
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. prune — to trim
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. club — for dancing
  9. pitch — completely
  10. can — to be able to
  11. net — in sport
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. club — for golf
  14. tear — from crying
  15. club — a group
  16. net — for catching
  17. prune — to trim
  18. tear — from crying
  19. can — a tin
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. tear — to rip
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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