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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: suit · kid · branch · hand · last · prune · track · cue

  1. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  2. When will it ________________ you to start?
  3. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a song
  2. suit — to fit
  3. cue — a hint
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. track — to keep track
  6. suit — clothes
  7. suit — in cards
  8. hand — help
  9. prune — to trim
  10. prune — to trim
  11. kid — child
  12. last — finally
  13. branch — a division
  14. track — a path
  15. cue — a signal
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. last — final
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. kid — to tease
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. cue — for pool
  23. last — to go on
  24. hand — in cards

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