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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: mouse · tear · rest · wound · prune · stick · rash · nail

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  6. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. tear — from crying
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. prune — to trim
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. wound — an injury
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. tear — to rip
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. tear — from crying
  13. rest — what's left
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. wound — an injury
  19. rash — hasty
  20. rash — a series
  21. prune — to trim
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. rest — what's left
  24. rest — a break

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