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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 116 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: branch · lie · prune · degree · hide · file · rash · bound

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. file — a tool
  3. file — a line of people
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. file — a document
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. lie — to recline
  8. degree — temperature
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. prune — to trim
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. bound — obliged
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. bound — certain
  15. bound — tied together
  16. branch — a division
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. degree — from a university
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. rash — hasty
  22. degree — an amount
  23. rash — a series
  24. rash — on the skin

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