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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. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. That was a fun ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. It's one o'clock ________________.
  23. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. mouse — the animal
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. prune — to trim
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. tear — to rip
  7. tear — from crying
  8. game — wild animals
  9. game — a match
  10. track — to keep track
  11. band — a ring
  12. mouse — for a computer
  13. prune — to trim
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. tear — from crying
  16. stand — to bear
  17. stand — for spectators
  18. track — a song
  19. sharp — clever
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. sharp — exactly
  23. band — a music group
  24. track — a path

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