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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. That must've been a ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. bound — tied together
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. chair — a leader
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. bound — certain
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. rush — a thrill
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bound — obliged
  14. prune — to trim
  15. band — a ring
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. band — a music group
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. toast — the most admired
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. toast — bread
  22. wound — an injury
  23. rush — hurry
  24. pitcher — a jug

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