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

Word bank: prune · roll · branch · rule · last · pitcher · club · swing

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. We're on a ________________ here.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. branch — a division
  3. club — for golf
  4. roll — a list
  5. club — a group
  6. roll — a cake
  7. prune — to trim
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. club — for dancing
  10. prune — to trim
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. last — finally
  14. roll — on a roll
  15. swing — in golf
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. last — final
  18. swing — music
  19. last — to go on
  20. swing — to play on
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. rule — government
  24. rule — a law

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