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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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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: prune · mine · mug · rest · tear · stock · ground · drill

  1. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. ground — a position
  3. mug — to rob
  4. mug — a cup
  5. tear — from crying
  6. drill — a practice
  7. tear — from crying
  8. ground — crushed
  9. stock — shares
  10. rest — a break
  11. mine — for digging
  12. rest — what's left
  13. mug — a face
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. prune — to trim
  17. drill — army training
  18. tear — to rip
  19. ground — the earth
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. drill — the tool
  22. prune — to trim
  23. stock — goods
  24. prune — the fruit

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