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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. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. pop — music
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. pop — soda
  6. cap — a hat
  7. prune — to trim
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. cell — a phone
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. present — a gift
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. pop — to visit
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. cap — a lid
  17. cell — in biology
  18. cap — of ice
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. bowl — a dish
  21. prune — to trim
  22. branch — a division
  23. present — there
  24. present — the time now

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