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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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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 · patient · land · dip · rule · deal · mate · key

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  13. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  16. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. mate — a friend
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. prune — to trim
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. mate — a partner
  7. land — to come down
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. prune — to trim
  10. deal — to handle
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. patient — calm and waiting
  13. deal — a big deal
  14. dip — to sink
  15. mate — to breed
  16. rule — government
  17. key — for a lock
  18. land — ground
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. land — a country
  21. key — in music
  22. key — the most important part
  23. rule — a law
  24. patient — a sick person

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