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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. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  10. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. snap — to click
  4. clip — a video
  5. race — humankind
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. wound — an injury
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. race — the arms race
  10. race — a contest
  11. wound — an injury
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. bass — the fish
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. prune — to trim
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. bass — low music
  21. clip — to cut
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. clip — for paper
  24. perch — the fish

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