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

Word bank: foot · board · prune · clip · net · tear · fine · rush

  1. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. That must've been a ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. fine — high quality
  2. board — to get on
  3. net — in sport
  4. tear — from crying
  5. rush — a thrill
  6. tear — from crying
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. foot — a measure
  10. prune — to trim
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. prune — to trim
  14. rush — hurry
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. net — for catching
  17. clip — a video
  18. fine — all right
  19. tear — to rip
  20. foot — part of the body
  21. board — a committee
  22. clip — to cut
  23. clip — for paper
  24. net — after costs

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