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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: wind · board · bear · hand · deal · prune · perch · rush

  1. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  8. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. hand — in cards
  3. bear — the animal
  4. rush — hurry
  5. prune — to trim
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. rush — to hurry
  8. board — to get on
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. deal — to handle
  11. wind — moving air
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. perch — the fish
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. wind — moving air
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. board — a committee
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. prune — to trim
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. hand — help
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. bear — the animal

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