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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. land — ground
  3. key — the most important part
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. bark — to shout
  6. fork — in a road
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. land — to come down
  11. pass — a permit
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. key — in music
  14. key — for a lock
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. band — a ring
  17. mine — for digging
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. band — a music group
  21. band — a rubber band
  22. prune — to trim
  23. land — a country
  24. fork — a garden tool

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