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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: bore · prune · wake · fine · hand · patient · ground · trunk

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  24. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. fine — high quality
  6. bore — to tire
  7. prune — to trim
  8. fine — all right
  9. ground — crushed
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. hand — help
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. prune — to trim
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. wake — a trail
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. patient — calm and waiting
  20. ground — a position
  21. hand — in cards
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. bore — to drill
  24. ground — the earth

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