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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: hand · prune · mug · deal · temple · mark · roll · clip

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. When was this ________________ built?
  12. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  15. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. hand — help
  4. roll — a list
  5. clip — for paper
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. mark — a grade
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. mug — to rob
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. temple — a place of worship
  12. deal — to handle
  13. prune — to trim
  14. clip — to cut
  15. temple — side of the head
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. roll — a cake
  18. hand — in cards
  19. clip — a video
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. mark — a trace
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. mug — a cup
  24. mug — a face

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