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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 120 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: prune · calf · branch · bat · fall · pitcher · bank · wake

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. wake — a trail
  5. bat — the animal
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. branch — a division
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. bank — for money
  10. fall — to drop
  11. fall — to drop
  12. bank — of a river
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. bank — for money
  19. fall — the season
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. prune — to trim
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. branch — of a bank

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