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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. prune — to trim
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. object — a thing
  5. ground — a position
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. pop — to visit
  9. pop — music
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. ground — the earth
  12. prune — to trim
  13. bark — to shout
  14. pop — soda
  15. rash — a series
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. object — to protest
  19. rash — hasty
  20. object — an aim
  21. ground — crushed
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. bark — of a tree

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