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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: branch · date · band · prune · field · mate · spring · foot

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. foot — part of the body
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. mate — a partner
  6. spring — the season
  7. band — a ring
  8. prune — to trim
  9. branch — a division
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. spring — of water
  12. field — for sport
  13. date — the fruit
  14. field — a subject
  15. mate — to breed
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. field — farmland
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. prune — to trim
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. foot — a measure
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. mate — a friend
  24. band — a music group

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