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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 120 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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  5. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. You don't need to ________________ round.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. pop — music
  3. ground — the earth
  4. cue — a hint
  5. cue — a signal
  6. scale — size or range
  7. ground — a position
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. ground — crushed
  11. wind — moving air
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. scale — in music
  15. bound — certain
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. bound — obliged
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. prune — to trim
  20. pop — soda
  21. wind — moving air
  22. cue — for pool
  23. pop — to visit
  24. bound — tied together

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