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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: track · spring · prune · can · game · roll · press · tube

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  7. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. prune — to trim
  3. roll — a list
  4. spring — the season
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. press — newspapers
  7. press — a publisher
  8. tube — the underground
  9. track — a song
  10. roll — a cake
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. can — a tin
  14. tube — in a tire
  15. game — a match
  16. spring — a coil
  17. can — a tin
  18. spring — of water
  19. game — wild animals
  20. prune — to trim
  21. tube — a container
  22. track — a path
  23. press — to push
  24. can — to be able to

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