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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 116 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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. Boris sat near the fire ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. row — to paddle
  4. rush — hurry
  5. snap — to click
  6. can — to be able to
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. bark — to shout
  9. prune — to trim
  10. row — a line
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. prune — to trim
  14. can — a tin
  15. can — a tin
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. pit — in a race
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. pit — a hole

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