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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 120 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: hand · tear · bulb · prune · mouse · object · net · cue

  1. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  2. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. tear — from crying
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. hand — in cards
  4. net — for catching
  5. net — in sport
  6. cue — for pool
  7. hand — help
  8. cue — a hint
  9. tear — from crying
  10. prune — to trim
  11. hand — part of the body
  12. prune — to trim
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. net — after costs
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. cue — a signal
  18. object — a thing
  19. object — to protest
  20. tear — to rip
  21. object — an aim
  22. bulb — for light
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. bulb — for light

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