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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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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: pit · lean · band · deal · prune · plane · mine · snap

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. lean — to bend
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. snap — to click
  7. deal — to handle
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. mine — for digging
  13. prune — to trim
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. lean — thin
  16. plane — a tool
  17. pit — in a race
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. band — a music group
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. prune — to trim
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. band — a ring

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