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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
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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: dip · game · prune · firm · rest · ground · cold · track

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. prune — to trim
  3. game — a match
  4. firm — a company
  5. cold — not warm
  6. track — a song
  7. ground — crushed
  8. prune — to trim
  9. ground — the earth
  10. track — to keep track
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. rest — what's left
  13. game — wild animals
  14. dip — to sink
  15. track — a path
  16. ground — a position
  17. firm — decided
  18. rest — what's left
  19. cold — an illness
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. rest — a break
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. firm — steady
  24. game — a kind of play

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