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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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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 · craft · land · pit · wound · lie · bore · racket

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. land — to come down
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. prune — to trim
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. land — a country
  11. lie — an untruth
  12. pit — a hole
  13. bore — gave birth
  14. bore — to tire
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. land — ground
  18. craft — boats
  19. lie — to recline
  20. wound — an injury
  21. pit — in a race
  22. craft — a skill
  23. wound — an injury
  24. bore — to drill

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