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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: track · board · fall · prune · spell · bore · last · snap

  1. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. track — a song
  3. bore — to tire
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. last — finally
  6. fall — to drop
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. fall — the season
  10. spell — a short time
  11. track — to keep track
  12. last — to go on
  13. bore — to drill
  14. fall — to drop
  15. snap — to click
  16. prune — to trim
  17. spell — magic
  18. last — final
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. track — a path
  21. board — to get on
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. prune — to trim
  24. spell — letters

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