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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 chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. snap — to click
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. cap — a lid
  6. degree — from a university
  7. prune — to trim
  8. degree — an amount
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. cap — a hat
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. cap — of ice
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. degree — temperature
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. stem — to come from
  19. branch — a division
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. bank — for money
  22. bank — of a river
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. bank — for money

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