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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. branch — a division
  3. prune — to trim
  4. squash — to crush
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. mug — a cup
  7. mark — a grade
  8. cell — a phone
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. mug — a face
  12. squash — the sport
  13. mark — a trace
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. prune — to trim
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. mug — to rob
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. rush — hurry
  21. cold — an illness
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. cold — not warm
  24. cell — in biology

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