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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. prune — to trim
  3. can — a tin
  4. bank — for money
  5. wound — an injury
  6. bank — for money
  7. rock — music
  8. file — a tool
  9. file — a document
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. file — a line of people
  12. race — the arms race
  13. rock — a stone
  14. bank — of a river
  15. can — a tin
  16. wound — an injury
  17. race — humankind
  18. race — a contest
  19. squash — to crush
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. can — to be able to
  22. rock — to move gently
  23. squash — the sport
  24. squash — the vegetable

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