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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  6. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. chip — for betting
  3. band — a ring
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. drill — the tool
  6. craft — a skill
  7. craft — boats
  8. drill — army training
  9. chip — to eat
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. race — a contest
  12. drill — a practice
  13. squash — to crush
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. race — the arms race
  16. race — humankind
  17. prune — to trim
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. band — a music group
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. squash — the sport
  23. season — of the year
  24. season — in sport

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