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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. When are we going to ________________?
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. We're on a ________________ here.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. wound — an injury
  3. key — in music
  4. key — the most important part
  5. stock — shares
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. pop — music
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. prune — to trim
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. pop — soda
  12. pop — to visit
  13. roll — a list
  14. land — ground
  15. roll — on a roll
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. wound — an injury
  18. land — a country
  19. stock — goods
  20. prune — to trim
  21. key — for a lock
  22. roll — a cake
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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