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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: bank · ruler · band · spring · pitch · net · straw · prune

  1. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — of a river
  2. prune — to trim
  3. ruler — a monarch
  4. spring — of water
  5. band — a music group
  6. prune — to trim
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. bank — for money
  10. net — after costs
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. net — in sport
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. bank — for money
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. pitch — completely
  20. band — a ring
  21. spring — a coil
  22. spring — the season
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. net — for catching

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