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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: last · staff · band · pound · prune · pit · wound · arm

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. pit — a hole
  3. wound — an injury
  4. prune — to trim
  5. staff — employees
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. last — final
  8. band — a music group
  9. last — to go on
  10. staff — a stick
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. band — a ring
  16. last — finally
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. staff — employees
  20. pit — in a race
  21. pound — a weight
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. wound — an injury
  24. arm — part of the body

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