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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: band · prune · lie · rush · mug · degree · branch · stem

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. degree — from a university
  5. lie — to recline
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. mug — a face
  8. degree — an amount
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. mug — a cup
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. mug — to rob
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. band — a music group
  17. degree — temperature
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. band — a ring
  20. prune — to trim
  21. stem — to come from
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. branch — a division
  24. prune — to trim

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