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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. bank — for money
  4. mark — a grade
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. cold — an illness
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. bank — of a river
  13. mouse — for a computer
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. mark — a trace
  16. prune — to trim
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. branch — a division
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. prune — to trim
  23. bank — for money
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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