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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 120 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: rock · prune · chest · ground · wave · rule · fall · pitcher

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. chest — of your body
  3. ground — the earth
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. fall — to drop
  7. rule — government
  8. rock — a stone
  9. ground — crushed
  10. rule — to rule out
  11. chest — a box
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. fall — to drop
  16. rule — a law
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. chest — of your body
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. ground — a position
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. prune — to trim
  23. prune — to trim
  24. rock — music

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