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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. prune — to trim
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. face — to confront
  6. mine — for digging
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. court — of a king
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. pop — music
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. court — for sport
  13. face — to point toward
  14. row — to paddle
  15. court — of law
  16. pop — to visit
  17. row — a line
  18. prune — to trim
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. pop — soda
  23. date — the fruit
  24. face — part of the head

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