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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 120 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: bat · stick · branch · spring · pitcher · pitch · prune · pit

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. spring — a coil
  6. pit — a hole
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. pitch — a sports field
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. spring — of water
  11. bat — the animal
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. prune — to trim
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. pitch — completely
  16. spring — the season
  17. branch — a division
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. pit — in a race
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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