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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: rock · wake · prune · snap · wound · mine · ball · lash

  1. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. prune — to trim
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. rock — music
  10. ball — a great time
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. mine — for digging
  13. ball — a dance
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. wound — an injury
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. prune — to trim
  18. rock — a stone
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. snap — to click
  23. wake — a trail
  24. wound — an injury

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