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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. perch — for a bird
  3. prune — to trim
  4. perch — the fish
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. branch — a division
  9. rule — government
  10. cue — a hint
  11. prune — to trim
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. cue — a signal
  14. band — a music group
  15. fine — all right
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. band — a ring
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. fine — high quality
  23. rule — a law
  24. cue — for pool

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