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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. suit — in cards
  4. net — for catching
  5. net — after costs
  6. prune — to trim
  7. net — in sport
  8. pop — music
  9. suit — clothes
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. cold — an illness
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. cold — not warm
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. suit — to fit
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. leaves — of a tree
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. prune — to trim
  21. pop — to visit
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. pop — soda
  24. leaves — to go away

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