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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: branch · scale · stock · game · prune · row

  1. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stock — a soup base
  2. stock — goods
  3. scale — in music
  4. row — to paddle
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. row — a line
  7. game — a match
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. prune — to trim
  10. branch — a division
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. game — wild animals
  13. prune — to trim
  14. stock — shares
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. row — a quarrel
  18. scale — size or range

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