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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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  8. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. game — a match
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. coach — pulled by horses
  8. fan — a supporter
  9. bark — to shout
  10. scale — in music
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. pop — music
  13. prune — to trim
  14. chip — to eat
  15. scale — size or range
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. game — wild animals
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. pop — to visit
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. pop — soda
  24. chip — for betting

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