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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  2. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — to attach or keep to
  2. root — of a plant
  3. mine — for digging
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. row — a line
  7. net — in sport
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. net — for catching
  11. court — for sport
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. prune — to trim
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. root — the cause
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. court — of a king
  19. prune — to trim
  20. root — of a word
  21. net — after costs
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. court — of law
  24. row — to paddle

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