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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: trunk · prune · temple · branch · snap · wound · tear · cue

  1. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. trunk — of a car
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. prune — to trim
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. cue — a signal
  7. branch — a division
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. snap — to click
  11. tear — from crying
  12. wound — past of 'wind'
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. prune — to trim
  15. cue — for pool
  16. tear — from crying
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. wound — an injury
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. cue — a hint
  22. tear — to rip
  23. wound — an injury
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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