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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. prune — to trim
  3. net — after costs
  4. prune — to trim
  5. capital — a city
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. mark — a grade
  8. file — a tool
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. bear — the animal
  11. bear — the animal
  12. rush — hurry
  13. net — in sport
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. file — a document
  17. net — for catching
  18. capital — money
  19. branch — a division
  20. mark — a trace
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. rush — a thrill

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