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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. The ________________ market has crashed.
  21. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. wind — moving air
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. bound — certain
  7. spell — magic
  8. branch — a division
  9. bound — tied together
  10. bound — obliged
  11. squash — the sport
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. spell — letters
  14. foot — a measure
  15. squash — to crush
  16. prune — to trim
  17. prune — to trim
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. wind — moving air
  20. stock — shares
  21. stock — goods
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. spell — a short time

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