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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: wind · tear · bay · chip · fork · prune

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. fork — in a road
  3. tear — from crying
  4. prune — to trim
  5. tear — to rip
  6. wind — moving air
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. prune — to trim
  10. tear — from crying
  11. chip — to eat
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. wind — moving air
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. chip — for betting

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