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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  3. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. Hard work is the ________________ to success.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. bowl — a football final
  3. squash — the sport
  4. prune — to trim
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. rock — music
  8. squash — to crush
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. key — for a lock
  11. ruler — a monarch
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. key — in music
  14. mine — for digging
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. row — a line
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. bowl — to roll
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. row — to paddle
  22. rock — a stone
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. key — the most important part

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