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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: land · stick · prune · ball · mine · march · roll · rush

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. We're on a ________________ here.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  24. That must've been a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. mine — for digging
  3. prune — to trim
  4. roll — on a roll
  5. march — music
  6. ball — a great time
  7. roll — a list
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. march — the month
  13. land — a country
  14. ball — a round shape
  15. ball — a dance
  16. prune — to trim
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. land — to come down
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. land — ground
  21. rush — hurry
  22. roll — a cake
  23. march — the month
  24. rush — a thrill

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