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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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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: date · cabinet · prune · wind · rule · branch · bat · rock

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. prune — to trim
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. bat — the animal
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. rock — a stone
  7. wind — moving air
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. rule — government
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. wind — moving air
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. date — the fruit
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. prune — to trim
  19. rock — music
  20. branch — a division
  21. rule — a law
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. bat — for baseball

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