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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: bore · ball · saw · branch · bank · cold · prune · present

  1. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. cold — not warm
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. ball — a great time
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. prune — to trim
  7. present — there
  8. present — a gift
  9. saw — the tool
  10. saw — the tool
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. bore — to tire
  13. present — the time now
  14. bank — of a river
  15. cold — an illness
  16. bore — gave birth
  17. bank — for money
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. ball — a dance
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. bore — to drill
  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