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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: rest · hide · bore · date · pop · game · cue · prune

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. That was a fun ________________.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. pop — music
  3. bore — to drill
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. pop — soda
  6. bore — to tire
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. date — the fruit
  11. rest — what's left
  12. cue — a hint
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. game — wild animals
  16. rest — what's left
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. rest — a break
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. game — a match
  21. pop — to visit
  22. cue — for pool
  23. cue — a signal
  24. prune — to trim

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