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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. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — an agreement
  2. prune — to trim
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. rock — music
  5. prune — to trim
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. roll — a cake
  8. roll — a list
  9. key — in music
  10. bark — to shout
  11. key — the most important part
  12. rock — a stone
  13. deal — to handle
  14. racket — for tennis
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. racket — for tennis
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. shower — to wash
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. shower — rain
  23. key — for a lock
  24. deal — a big deal

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