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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: prune · drill · perch · hand · stick · branch · chair · club

  1. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  13. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  18. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  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. club — a group
  2. drill — army training
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. perch — the fish
  5. prune — to trim
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. club — for golf
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. drill — a practice
  10. chair — a professorship
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. chair — to sit on
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. hand — in cards
  15. branch — a division
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. stick — to attach or keep to
  18. club — for dancing
  19. hand — help
  20. chair — a leader
  21. drill — the tool
  22. prune — to trim
  23. hand — part of the body
  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