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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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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: prune · mug · rule · wave · race · row · court · object

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  8. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. race — the arms race
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. prune — to trim
  7. rule — to rule out
  8. object — to protest
  9. prune — to trim
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. court — for sport
  12. court — of law
  13. mug — a face
  14. row — to paddle
  15. race — a contest
  16. mug — a cup
  17. row — a line
  18. rule — government
  19. rule — a law
  20. race — humankind
  21. court — of a king
  22. mug — to rob
  23. object — a thing
  24. wave — with your hand

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