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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. shower — rain
  4. shower — to wash
  5. pop — to visit
  6. squash — the sport
  7. branch — a division
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. content — happy
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. saw — the tool
  12. pop — soda
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. perch — the fish
  16. content — the amount
  17. saw — the tool
  18. pop — music
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. squash — to crush
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. prune — to trim

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