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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: wake · game · fine · sharp · mine · prune · march · scale

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  11. It's one o'clock ________________.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. march — the month
  5. prune — to trim
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. march — the month
  9. mine — for digging
  10. mine — belonging to me
  11. sharp — exactly
  12. sharp — clever
  13. game — wild animals
  14. fine — all right
  15. scale — size or range
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. march — music
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. game — a match
  20. wake — a trail
  21. fine — high quality
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. scale — in music
  24. prune — to trim

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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