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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: ground · drill · prune · bear · bound · cell · spell · tear

  1. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. That was ________________ to happen.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. We had a fire ________________ at school today.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — the earth
  2. tear — from crying
  3. tear — to rip
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. cell — a phone
  6. spell — letters
  7. bear — the animal
  8. spell — magic
  9. bound — tied together
  10. spell — a short time
  11. bound — obliged
  12. cell — in biology
  13. bear — the animal
  14. ground — a position
  15. prune — to trim
  16. drill — army training
  17. ground — crushed
  18. prune — to trim
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. drill — the tool
  21. bound — certain
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. tear — from crying
  24. drill — a practice

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