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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: board · bay · prune · season · wound · present · row · pitcher

  1. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. row — a line
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. present — there
  6. present — the time now
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. bay — to keep at bay
  9. prune — to trim
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. season — in sport
  12. row — to paddle
  13. board — a committee
  14. prune — to trim
  15. wound — an injury
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. season — of the year
  19. wound — an injury
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. board — to get on
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. present — a gift
  24. prune — the fruit

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