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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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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: drill · sharp · toast · prune · game · clip · fall · pop

  1. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. drill — a practice
  2. sharp — clever
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. pop — to visit
  5. toast — bread
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. drill — the tool
  8. pop — soda
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. game — wild animals
  11. prune — to trim
  12. clip — to cut
  13. prune — to trim
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. fall — the season
  16. game — a match
  17. clip — a video
  18. fall — to drop
  19. pop — music
  20. drill — army training
  21. fall — to drop
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. toast — a drink to someone
  24. clip — for paper

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