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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: bore · root · face · pitcher · track · swing · prune · squash

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  21. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. track — to keep track
  4. squash — to crush
  5. bore — to drill
  6. track — a song
  7. root — the cause
  8. face — part of the head
  9. root — of a word
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. swing — in golf
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. prune — to trim
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. squash — the sport
  17. face — to confront
  18. bore — to tire
  19. track — a path
  20. root — of a plant
  21. face — to point toward
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. swing — music
  24. swing — to play on

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