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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 · rule · charge · pitcher · land · scale · spring · stick

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. land — ground
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. scale — in music
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. charge — a price
  8. scale — size or range
  9. spring — of water
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. rule — to rule out
  12. spring — a coil
  13. charge — electricity
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. rule — government
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. prune — to trim
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. prune — to trim
  20. rule — a law
  21. land — to come down
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. charge — in control
  24. land — a country

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