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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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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: mine · kid · bound · prune · spell · ruler · bulb · roll

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. prune — to trim
  3. spell — a short time
  4. roll — a cake
  5. prune — to trim
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. bound — certain
  10. spell — letters
  11. kid — to tease
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. bound — tied together
  14. bulb — for light
  15. bulb — for light
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. roll — a list
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. mine — for digging
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. spell — magic
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. bound — obliged
  24. kid — child

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