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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: prune · wound · chest · game · rule · bound · charge · pop

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. The tickets are free of ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. You don't need to ________________ round.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. wound — an injury
  3. game — wild animals
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. charge — electricity
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. bound — certain
  10. charge — a price
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. chest — of your body
  13. chest — a box
  14. chest — of your body
  15. rule — a law
  16. pop — to visit
  17. pop — music
  18. charge — in control
  19. bound — obliged
  20. prune — to trim
  21. pop — soda
  22. rule — government
  23. game — a match
  24. bound — tied together

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