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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: coach · cold · bear · lean · branch · roll · wave · prune

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. lean — thin
  7. roll — a cake
  8. lean — to bend
  9. cold — not warm
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — to trim
  12. coach — pulled by horses
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. bear — the animal
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. cold — an illness
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. bear — the animal
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. branch — a division

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