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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. mug — to rob
  5. branch — a division
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. prune — to trim
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. wind — moving air
  11. fork — in a road
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. root — of a word
  15. mug — a cup
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. root — of a plant
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. mug — a face
  21. root — the cause
  22. wind — moving air
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. fork — a garden tool

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