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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  6. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  21. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. deal — to handle
  3. drill — army training
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. chip — in a computer
  6. track — a path
  7. drill — a practice
  8. game — wild animals
  9. chip — to eat
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. fall — the season
  12. prune — to trim
  13. drill — the tool
  14. fall — to drop
  15. track — a song
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. fall — to drop
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. track — to keep track
  21. deal — an agreement
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. chip — for betting
  24. game — a match

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