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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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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: pop · charge · root · net · prune · patient · wind · tear

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. prune — to trim
  3. charge — in control
  4. tear — from crying
  5. charge — electricity
  6. pop — music
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. pop — to visit
  9. pop — soda
  10. wind — moving air
  11. tear — to rip
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. root — the cause
  14. net — in sport
  15. net — after costs
  16. root — of a word
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. wind — moving air
  20. prune — to trim
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. root — of a plant
  23. charge — a price
  24. tear — from crying

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