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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: lie · stock · prune · racket · ground · branch · bowl · clip

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. prune — to trim
  3. clip — for paper
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. lie — to recline
  9. stock — shares
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. clip — to cut
  12. prune — to trim
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. ground — crushed
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. ground — the earth
  17. ground — a position
  18. clip — a video
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. stock — goods
  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