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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: roll · rest · march · jam · season · prune · clip · row

  1. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  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. jam — to spread on bread
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. prune — to trim
  4. rest — what's left
  5. season — in sport
  6. march — the month
  7. rest — what's left
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. roll — a cake
  10. row — to paddle
  11. march — the month
  12. row — a line
  13. season — of the year
  14. march — music
  15. clip — to cut
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. roll — a list
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. jam — a tight spot
  20. clip — for paper
  21. clip — a video
  22. rest — a break
  23. jam — in traffic
  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