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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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Word bank
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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: ground · tear · craft · prune · pop · current · straw · wake

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. ground — crushed
  3. tear — to rip
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. straw — dry grass
  6. ground — a position
  7. tear — from crying
  8. prune — to trim
  9. craft — a handicraft
  10. ground — the earth
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. wake — a trail
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. pop — music
  15. craft — boats
  16. current — electric
  17. craft — a skill
  18. tear — from crying
  19. prune — to trim
  20. pop — soda
  21. pop — to visit
  22. current — of water
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. current — happening now

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