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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 120 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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to snap out of it
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. prune — to trim
  4. club — a group
  5. prune — to trim
  6. wound — an injury
  7. club — for dancing
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. key — in music
  10. board — to get on
  11. wound — an injury
  12. season — in sport
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. snap — to click
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. club — for golf
  18. drill — the tool
  19. key — for a lock
  20. key — the most important part
  21. board — a committee
  22. drill — a practice
  23. season — of the year
  24. drill — army training

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