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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: pit · march · tear · hide · rock · prune · pitcher · stick

  1. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — animal skin
  2. prune — to trim
  3. rock — a stone
  4. tear — to rip
  5. tear — from crying
  6. march — music
  7. rock — music
  8. rock — to move gently
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. pit — in a race
  13. tear — from crying
  14. prune — to trim
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. march — the month
  20. march — the month
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. pit — a hole
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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