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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: field · bore · rash · current · pass · tear · prune · kick

  1. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. prune — to trim
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. field — farmland
  5. rash — hasty
  6. current — of water
  7. tear — to rip
  8. pass — a permit
  9. rash — a series
  10. bore — to drill
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. current — electric
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. bore — to tire
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. current — happening now
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. tear — from crying
  19. field — a subject
  20. kick — a thrill
  21. kick — in football
  22. prune — to trim
  23. pass — to succeed
  24. field — for sport

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