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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. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  5. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. prune — to trim
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. racket — a loud noise
  5. mug — a cup
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. rash — a series
  9. pop — to visit
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. rash — hasty
  14. mug — a face
  15. branch — a division
  16. board — to get on
  17. bat — the animal
  18. prune — to trim
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. board — a committee
  23. pop — music
  24. pop — soda

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