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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. We're almost out of ________________.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. pop — soda
  4. pop — to visit
  5. bank — of a river
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. pop — music
  8. bank — for money
  9. chest — of your body
  10. kid — to tease
  11. band — a ring
  12. cap — a lid
  13. cap — a hat
  14. chest — a box
  15. prune — to trim
  16. cap — of ice
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. chest — of your body
  20. kid — child
  21. band — a music group
  22. prune — to trim
  23. bank — for money
  24. prune — the fruit

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