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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. saw — the tool
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. arm — a part of something
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. ground — crushed
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. ground — a position
  9. ground — the earth
  10. branch — a division
  11. saw — the tool
  12. march — the month
  13. march — music
  14. kid — child
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. prune — to trim
  20. march — the month
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. kid — to tease
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. wave — a sudden rise

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