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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: prune · date · tear · fork · plane · clip · mine · bank

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  12. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  15. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. clip — a video
  3. bank — of a river
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. tear — to rip
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. prune — to trim
  9. plane — a tool
  10. tear — from crying
  11. bank — for money
  12. plane — in geometry
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. fork — a garden tool
  15. bank — for money
  16. date — the fruit
  17. mine — for digging
  18. prune — to trim
  19. clip — to cut
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. tear — from crying
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. clip — for paper
  24. fork — in a road

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