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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. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. march — the month
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. key — for a lock
  5. key — in music
  6. bound — certain
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. bound — tied together
  9. march — the month
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. spring — a coil
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. bound — obliged
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. branch — of a bank
  17. spring — of water
  18. spring — the season
  19. prune — to trim
  20. march — music
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. key — the most important part
  24. branch — a division

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