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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: patient · game · tear · prune · deal · can · pop · race

  1. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  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. pop — music
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. prune — to trim
  4. can — a tin
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. tear — from crying
  7. can — to be able to
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. race — humankind
  10. game — a match
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. race — the arms race
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. pop — to visit
  16. tear — to rip
  17. tear — from crying
  18. race — a contest
  19. game — wild animals
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. deal — to handle
  22. pop — soda
  23. can — a tin
  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