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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: pitcher · row · branch · key · prune · land · rule · chair

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. key — in music
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. branch — a division
  6. key — for a lock
  7. land — ground
  8. land — a country
  9. key — the most important part
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. rule — a law
  13. rule — government
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. row — to paddle
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. prune — to trim
  18. row — a line
  19. land — to come down
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. chair — a leader
  24. branch — of a tree

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