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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: prune · wind · rash · pass · ruler · date · row · race

  1. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. race — the arms race
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. prune — to trim
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. pass — to succeed
  8. date — the fruit
  9. row — a line
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. prune — to trim
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. wind — moving air
  14. pass — a permit
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. rash — a series
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. race — humankind
  19. race — a contest
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. wind — moving air
  22. rash — hasty
  23. row — to paddle
  24. pass — to spend time

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