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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. rule — a law
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. row — a line
  5. wound — an injury
  6. chair — a leader
  7. land — to come down
  8. drill — the tool
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. wound — an injury
  12. drill — a practice
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. row — to paddle
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. drill — army training
  17. chair — to sit on
  18. prune — to trim
  19. land — ground
  20. land — a country
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. rule — government
  24. rule — to rule out

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