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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 116 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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. My mare is ________________ in color.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. drill — the tool
  3. prune — to trim
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. drill — a practice
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. wound — an injury
  10. bay — a horse colour
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. prune — to trim
  13. content — the amount
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. drill — army training
  16. row — a line
  17. wound — an injury
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. content — happy
  20. content — videos and posts
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. fork — in a road
  23. row — to paddle
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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