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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: prune · leaves · content · wake · date · straw · race · rash

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  20. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. race — a contest
  3. content — happy
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. content — the amount
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. rash — hasty
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. wake — a trail
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. date — the fruit
  14. prune — to trim
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. race — the arms race
  17. prune — to trim
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. race — humankind
  20. straw — a straw man
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. wake — to stop sleeping
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. wake — before a funeral

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