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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: lean · nail · race · pitch · rash · prune · plane · ball

  1. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  11. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  12. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. nail — on a finger
  2. ball — a dance
  3. lean — thin
  4. prune — to trim
  5. prune — to trim
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. pitch — completely
  9. ball — a great time
  10. plane — in geometry
  11. race — a contest
  12. rash — a series
  13. rash — hasty
  14. lean — to bend
  15. race — humankind
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. plane — a tool
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. race — the arms race
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. pitch — a sports field
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. nail — for a hammer

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