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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. mine — for digging
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. prune — to trim
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. fork — in a road
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. clip — a video
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. object — a thing
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. key — in music
  17. key — the most important part
  18. clip — for paper
  19. key — for a lock
  20. bass — the fish
  21. object — an aim
  22. object — to protest
  23. clip — to cut
  24. bass — low music

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