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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: date · mug · fall · trunk · game · prune · pop · fine

  1. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Where did you ________________ them?
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  23. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. pop — music
  3. mug — to rob
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. prune — to trim
  7. fine — high quality
  8. mug — a cup
  9. mug — a face
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. game — wild animals
  12. prune — to trim
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. fall — to drop
  15. pop — soda
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. fall — the season
  19. game — a match
  20. pop — to visit
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. date — the fruit
  23. fine — a penalty
  24. fine — all right

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