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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: prune · drill · last · row · chest · branch · bore · lash

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. drill — the tool
  3. row — a line
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. chest — a box
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. chest — of your body
  11. bore — to drill
  12. drill — army training
  13. prune — to trim
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. prune — to trim
  17. last — finally
  18. bore — to tire
  19. row — to paddle
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. chest — of your body
  22. last — final
  23. branch — a division
  24. last — to go on

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