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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: deal · prune · board · cap · trunk · pitcher · tear · straw

  1. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  11. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. deal — to handle
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. board — a flat piece
  4. tear — from crying
  5. board — a committee
  6. board — to get on
  7. cap — of ice
  8. tear — from crying
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. deal — a big deal
  11. straw — to clutch at straws
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. cap — a lid
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. tear — to rip
  17. cap — a hat
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. prune — to trim
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. deal — an agreement
  23. prune — to trim
  24. pitcher — in baseball

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