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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 116 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: firm · cold · wake · ball · pop · lie · prune · bound

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  16. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. bound — tied together
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. pop — soda
  5. firm — decided
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. bound — certain
  11. pop — music
  12. bound — obliged
  13. prune — to trim
  14. ball — a dance
  15. firm — a company
  16. lie — to recline
  17. prune — to trim
  18. pop — to visit
  19. cold — not warm
  20. wake — a trail
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. firm — steady
  23. ball — a great time
  24. cold — an illness

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