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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: prune · race · present · fall · ball · mark · leaves · tear

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. ball — a great time
  3. race — the arms race
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. ball — a dance
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. present — the time now
  8. fall — to drop
  9. fall — the season
  10. mark — a grade
  11. tear — to rip
  12. prune — to trim
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. fall — to drop
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. prune — to trim
  17. present — a gift
  18. race — humankind
  19. race — a contest
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — from crying
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. mark — a trace

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