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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: branch · wave · prune · rest · court · key · snap · race

  1. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. race — the arms race
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. court — of law
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. race — humankind
  6. branch — a division
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. snap — to click
  10. key — the most important part
  11. prune — to trim
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. prune — to trim
  15. race — a contest
  16. key — in music
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. court — of a king
  19. rest — what's left
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. rest — a break
  22. key — for a lock
  23. rest — what's left
  24. court — for sport

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