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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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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: perch · pit · bark · cell · branch · arm · prune · cap

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  24. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. cell — in biology
  3. bark — to shout
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. cap — of ice
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. pit — in a race
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. branch — a division
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. prune — to trim
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. cap — a lid
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. cell — a phone
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. pit — a hole
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. cap — a hat
  23. perch — the fish
  24. perch — for a bird

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