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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: stick · capital · prune · branch · press · tear · mug · row

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. press — a publisher
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. row — to paddle
  5. capital — money
  6. mug — a face
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. press — newspapers
  9. row — a line
  10. press — to push
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. branch — a division
  13. prune — to trim
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. mug — a cup
  16. tear — to rip
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. tear — from crying
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. capital — a city
  23. tear — from crying
  24. mug — to rob

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