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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: capital · prune · wind · race · mark · hide · branch · chair

  1. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  2. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  13. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. She got the top ________________ in the exam.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a tree
  2. hide — animal skin
  3. wind — moving air
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. race — humankind
  6. capital — money
  7. mark — to pay attention
  8. branch — a division
  9. prune — to trim
  10. capital — a city
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. chair — a leader
  13. chair — to sit on
  14. mark — a trace
  15. race — a contest
  16. prune — to trim
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. wind — moving air
  20. race — the arms race
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. mark — a grade

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