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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. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. file — a document
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. prune — to trim
  8. bound — obliged
  9. bound — certain
  10. file — a tool
  11. ground — crushed
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. ground — a position
  14. season — in sport
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. dip — to sink
  17. prune — to trim
  18. file — a line of people
  19. branch — a division
  20. ground — the earth
  21. season — of the year
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. bound — tied together

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