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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: shower · bank · clip · branch · ball · key · prune · racket

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. The King held a masked ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. key — for a lock
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. bank — for money
  6. ball — a dance
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. key — the most important part
  10. shower — rain
  11. prune — to trim
  12. clip — for paper
  13. bank — of a river
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. branch — a division
  16. prune — to trim
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. bank — for money
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. shower — to wash
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. clip — a video
  23. clip — to cut
  24. key — in music

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