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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. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. sharp — clever
  3. prune — to trim
  4. wound — an injury
  5. prune — to trim
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. wound — an injury
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. wind — moving air
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. tube — the underground
  13. object — a thing
  14. band — a ring
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. wind — moving air
  17. object — an aim
  18. band — a music group
  19. object — to protest
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. mark — a grade
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. tube — a container
  24. band — a rubber band

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