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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 116 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: net · perch · tear · chair · track · prune · rule · bulb

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. track — to keep track
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. prune — to trim
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. net — for catching
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. rule — government
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. bulb — for light
  12. perch — the fish
  13. net — in sport
  14. rule — a law
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. track — a song
  17. chair — a leader
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. bulb — for light
  20. tear — from crying
  21. prune — to trim
  22. track — a path
  23. tear — from crying
  24. tear — to rip

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