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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 · patient · lean · swing · root · coach · band · drill

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  15. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. patient — a sick person
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. lean — thin
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. lean — to bend
  7. band — a music group
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. prune — to trim
  10. swing — music
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. drill — army training
  13. swing — to play on
  14. root — of a plant
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. drill — the tool
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. band — a ring
  20. prune — to trim
  21. root — of a word
  22. swing — in golf
  23. drill — a practice
  24. root — the cause

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