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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. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  23. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. content — the amount
  2. can — a tin
  3. prune — to trim
  4. band — a music group
  5. wound — an injury
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. wound — an injury
  10. prune — to trim
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. band — a ring
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. content — videos and posts
  15. wake — a trail
  16. pound — a weight
  17. tear — to rip
  18. can — a tin
  19. tear — from crying
  20. content — happy
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. pound — for dogs
  23. can — to be able to
  24. tear — from crying

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