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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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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: staff · pit · prune · drill · stock · pitcher · rest · fine

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. The ________________ market has crashed.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  20. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. fine — high quality
  3. stock — a soup base
  4. staff — employees
  5. stock — goods
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. drill — army training
  8. drill — the tool
  9. rest — what's left
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. staff — employees
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. drill — a practice
  14. rest — a break
  15. staff — a stick
  16. stock — shares
  17. fine — all right
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. rest — what's left
  20. pit — a hole
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. pit — in a race
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. prune — to trim

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