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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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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: tear · object · snap · saw · prune · band · wake · plane

  1. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. The ________________ took off on time.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  20. She's very handy with a ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. saw — the tool
  3. band — a music group
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. plane — an aircraft
  6. prune — to trim
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. snap — to click
  9. plane — a tool
  10. object — an aim
  11. object — to protest
  12. wake — a trail
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. wake — before a funeral
  15. tear — from crying
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. band — a ring
  18. tear — to rip
  19. tear — from crying
  20. saw — the tool
  21. prune — to trim
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. object — a thing

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