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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: march · spring · fan · mate · prune · rock · branch · kick

  1. Have you found your soul ________________?
  2. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  12. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a partner
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. rock — music
  6. prune — to trim
  7. prune — to trim
  8. march — the month
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. rock — a stone
  12. mate — to breed
  13. spring — the season
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. branch — a division
  17. mate — a friend
  18. march — music
  19. spring — a coil
  20. spring — of water
  21. kick — in football
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. march — the month

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