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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
468
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: pound · net · rest · last · prune · date · trunk · fan

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. prune — to trim
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. pound — a weight
  9. date — the fruit
  10. last — final
  11. last — to go on
  12. prune — to trim
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. net — for catching
  15. last — finally
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. net — in sport
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. rest — a break
  21. rest — what's left
  22. rest — what's left
  23. net — after costs
  24. fan — to cool the air

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