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

Word bank: rash · fall · pass · swing · hand · prune

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  8. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. prune — to trim
  3. swing — in golf
  4. fall — the season
  5. swing — to play on
  6. hand — in cards
  7. pass — to spend time
  8. swing — music
  9. rash — a series
  10. pass — a permit
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. hand — help
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. fall — to drop
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. prune — to trim
  18. rash — hasty

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