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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: fine · deal · fan · mine · prune · ground · perch · roll

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. prune — to trim
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. roll — a list
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. prune — to trim
  9. fine — all right
  10. ground — the earth
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. ground — crushed
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. fine — high quality
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. ground — a position
  21. deal — to handle
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. roll — a cake
  24. perch — the fish

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