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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 120 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: prune · march · wind · firm · root · pop · branch · stem

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  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. march — the month
  2. stem — to come from
  3. branch — a division
  4. pop — soda
  5. march — the month
  6. firm — steady
  7. firm — a company
  8. root — of a word
  9. march — music
  10. root — the cause
  11. wind — moving air
  12. pop — music
  13. root — of a plant
  14. wind — moving air
  15. pop — to visit
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. stem — a stem cell
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. prune — to trim
  23. firm — decided
  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