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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: pitcher · fall · rule · land · prune · sharp · rock · mug

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  5. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. mug — a cup
  3. fall — to drop
  4. mug — a face
  5. rule — a law
  6. fall — to drop
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. land — to come down
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. rule — government
  13. mug — to rob
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. prune — to trim
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. fall — the season
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. land — ground
  21. land — a country
  22. rock — a stone
  23. prune — to trim
  24. sharp — clever

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