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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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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: can · prune · deal · object · bat · hand · branch · club

  1. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. can — a tin
  3. can — a tin
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. prune — to trim
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. hand — in cards
  8. club — a group
  9. branch — a division
  10. bat — the animal
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. object — to protest
  13. object — a thing
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. club — for golf
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. hand — help
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. object — an aim
  20. club — for dancing
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. prune — to trim
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. deal — to handle

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