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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: net · prune · bay · bound · deal · leaves · tear · kid

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. kid — child
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. tear — to rip
  7. bay — a part of the sea
  8. net — after costs
  9. bound — tied together
  10. bay — to keep at bay
  11. bound — certain
  12. kid — to tease
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. net — in sport
  15. tear — from crying
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. prune — to trim
  18. deal — to handle
  19. tear — from crying
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. net — for catching
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. bound — obliged
  24. prune — to trim

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