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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: tube · prune · plane · mine · mark · ruler · cold · charge

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  6. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. cold — an illness
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. charge — electricity
  5. ruler — a monarch
  6. charge — in control
  7. prune — to trim
  8. tube — the underground
  9. charge — a price
  10. prune — to trim
  11. mark — a trace
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. mark — a grade
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. mine — an explosive
  17. plane — a tool
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. tube — a container
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. cold — not warm
  24. ruler — for measuring

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