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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. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. prune — to trim
  3. wind — moving air
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. prune — to trim
  7. can — to be able to
  8. band — a music group
  9. drill — a practice
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. can — a tin
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. drill — army training
  14. fine — all right
  15. drill — the tool
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. plane — a tool
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. band — a ring
  22. can — a tin
  23. wind — moving air
  24. band — a rubber band

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