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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 116 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: track · bank · march · press · trunk · prune · degree · drill

  1. Did you ________________ the button?
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  24. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.

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

Answer key

  1. press — to push
  2. prune — to trim
  3. bank — for money
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. drill — a practice
  6. press — a publisher
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. degree — an amount
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. track — a song
  11. march — the month
  12. march — the month
  13. press — newspapers
  14. degree — from a university
  15. prune — to trim
  16. track — to keep track
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. drill — the tool
  19. degree — temperature
  20. drill — army training
  21. march — music
  22. track — a path
  23. bank — of a river
  24. bank — for money

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