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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  6. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. When will it ________________ you to start?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. wind — moving air
  3. suit — clothes
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. suit — in cards
  6. pound — to hit hard
  7. last — final
  8. prune — to trim
  9. current — electric
  10. current — happening now
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. last — finally
  13. wind — moving air
  14. spring — the season
  15. last — to go on
  16. pound — a weight
  17. hand — in cards
  18. prune — to trim
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. spring — a coil
  21. current — of water
  22. hand — help
  23. spring — of water
  24. suit — to fit

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