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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 124 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: race · wound · pitcher · jam · toast · tube · prune · bear

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  18. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  22. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  23. I'll be taking the ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. race — a contest
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. race — the arms race
  8. race — humankind
  9. wound — an injury
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. jam — in traffic
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. bear — the animal
  17. toast — the most admired
  18. jam — a tight spot
  19. tube — a container
  20. prune — to trim
  21. toast — bread
  22. bear — the animal
  23. tube — the underground
  24. wound — an injury

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