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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: row · firm · staff · cold · bay · branch · prune · trunk

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. staff — employees
  3. branch — a division
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. cold — an illness
  6. cold — not warm
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. firm — decided
  11. row — to paddle
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. prune — to trim
  15. staff — a stick
  16. firm — steady
  17. prune — to trim
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. trunk — of an elephant
  20. staff — employees
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. row — a line
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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