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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 116 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: row · ground · last · prune · bat · fork · track · rash

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. last — finally
  7. row — a line
  8. ground — a position
  9. track — a path
  10. rash — hasty
  11. ground — crushed
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. fork — in a road
  14. track — a song
  15. last — final
  16. prune — to trim
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. ground — the earth
  20. prune — to trim
  21. track — to keep track
  22. row — to paddle
  23. fork — a garden tool
  24. last — to go on

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