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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. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  17. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. prune — to trim
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. fall — to drop
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. spell — letters
  7. spring — a coil
  8. row — to paddle
  9. prune — to trim
  10. spell — magic
  11. pitch — completely
  12. spell — a short time
  13. spring — the season
  14. row — a line
  15. bark — to shout
  16. bark — a dog's sound
  17. deal — an agreement
  18. fall — the season
  19. fall — to drop
  20. spring — of water
  21. pitch — a sales talk
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. deal — to handle
  24. row — a quarrel

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