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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 124 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. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  12. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. prune — to trim
  4. branch — a division
  5. prune — to trim
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. chip — to eat
  9. tube — the underground
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. press — a publisher
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. press — newspapers
  17. bat — the animal
  18. chip — for betting
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. sharp — clever
  21. tube — a container
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. nail — on a finger

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