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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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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: march · prune · pitch · squash · clip · bore · can · branch

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. clip — for paper
  5. bore — to tire
  6. pitch — completely
  7. can — a tin
  8. branch — a division
  9. march — the month
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. march — the month
  12. clip — to cut
  13. squash — the sport
  14. can — a tin
  15. march — music
  16. bore — to drill
  17. prune — to trim
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. clip — a video
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. can — to be able to
  24. squash — to crush

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