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

  1. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. prune — to trim
  4. deal — an agreement
  5. file — a tool
  6. rash — a series
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. club — for dancing
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. file — a line of people
  12. club — for golf
  13. bore — to drill
  14. rash — hasty
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. pitch — a sports field
  18. prune — to trim
  19. deal — to handle
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. pitch — completely
  22. file — a document
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. club — a group

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