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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: bore · spell · row · roll · prune · ground · kid · branch

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. branch — a division
  4. ground — a position
  5. roll — a cake
  6. spell — magic
  7. bore — to tire
  8. spell — letters
  9. bore — gave birth
  10. prune — to trim
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. roll — a list
  13. kid — child
  14. bore — to drill
  15. kid — to tease
  16. ground — crushed
  17. row — to paddle
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. spell — a short time
  21. prune — to trim
  22. row — a line
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. row — a quarrel

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