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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: capital · prune · march · cue · branch · straw · band · tube

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. march — the month
  3. prune — to trim
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. band — a music group
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. capital — money
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. branch — a division
  10. tube — a container
  11. prune — to trim
  12. capital — a city
  13. march — the month
  14. tube — the underground
  15. cue — a hint
  16. cue — a signal
  17. cue — for pool
  18. march — music
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. band — a ring

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