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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: pop · tear · fan · ball · lash · bank · prune · bat

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  11. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. ball — a dance
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. pop — to visit
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. bank — for money
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. tear — from crying
  9. pop — soda
  10. tear — to rip
  11. fan — to cool the air
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. bank — of a river
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. bank — for money
  17. tear — from crying
  18. prune — to trim
  19. bat — the animal
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. ball — a great time
  22. prune — to trim
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. bat — in an idiom

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