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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. wake — a trail
  3. net — in sport
  4. net — for catching
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. prune — to trim
  8. bound — obliged
  9. prune — to trim
  10. hand — in cards
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. swing — to play on
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. bass — the fish
  15. bound — tied together
  16. net — after costs
  17. swing — music
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. bound — certain
  22. hand — help
  23. bass — low music
  24. swing — in golf

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