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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: leaves · present · prune · cold · roll · drill · branch · pitch

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. present — there
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. cold — an illness
  6. present — a gift
  7. branch — a division
  8. prune — to trim
  9. roll — a cake
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. drill — the tool
  13. prune — to trim
  14. drill — army training
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. cold — not warm
  18. roll — a list
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. pitch — completely
  21. drill — a practice
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. present — the time now
  24. leaves — to go away

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