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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: bat · ground · prune · last · rock · firm · rush · chest

  1. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — a box
  2. rush — hurry
  3. firm — steady
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. rock — a stone
  7. ground — the earth
  8. last — finally
  9. prune — to trim
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. last — to go on
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bat — the animal
  14. ground — a position
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. firm — a company
  17. ground — crushed
  18. chest — of your body
  19. rock — music
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. prune — to trim
  22. firm — decided
  23. last — final
  24. prune — the fruit

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