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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. branch — a division
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. mark — a trace
  6. staff — employees
  7. cap — a lid
  8. cap — of ice
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. cap — a hat
  13. chest — of your body
  14. chest — of your body
  15. staff — a stick
  16. mark — a grade
  17. chest — a box
  18. staff — employees
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. band — a music group
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. band — a ring
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. prune — to trim

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