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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  20. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. game — a match
  3. rest — a break
  4. row — a line
  5. bear — the animal
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. row — to paddle
  8. game — wild animals
  9. branch — a division
  10. safe — a strongbox
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. bear — the animal
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. saw — the tool
  15. safe — out of danger
  16. saw — the tool
  17. branch — of a tree
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. branch — of a bank
  20. rest — what's left
  21. rest — what's left
  22. prune — to trim
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. bear — to put up with

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