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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 · pound · vault · wave · patient · tear · bound · prune

  1. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. rock — music
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. tear — from crying
  7. vault — a safe
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. vault — in gymnastics
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. pound — a weight
  13. prune — to trim
  14. bound — certain
  15. bound — tied together
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. rock — a stone
  18. prune — to trim
  19. tear — to rip
  20. vault — an arched ceiling
  21. bound — obliged
  22. tear — from crying
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. patient — a sick person

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