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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: row · rest · fan · fall · prune · land · pitcher · root

  1. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  8. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. rest — what's left
  3. land — to come down
  4. rest — what's left
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. rest — a break
  7. root — of a plant
  8. root — of a word
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. land — a country
  11. land — ground
  12. root — the cause
  13. prune — to trim
  14. row — a line
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. fall — to drop
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. pitcher — a jug
  19. fall — to drop
  20. prune — to trim
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. fall — the season
  24. fan — a supporter

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