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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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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: prune · bulb · drill · bowl · clip · rest · march · pound

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  5. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. bulb — for light
  4. bowl — to roll
  5. rest — a break
  6. march — the month
  7. pound — to hit hard
  8. prune — to trim
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. rest — what's left
  11. drill — a practice
  12. march — music
  13. drill — army training
  14. drill — the tool
  15. bulb — for light
  16. prune — to trim
  17. march — the month
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. clip — a video
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. pound — a weight
  22. rest — what's left
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. clip — for paper

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