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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: stick · game · object · wave · perch · prune · pound · tear

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  6. That was a fun ________________.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. prune — to trim
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. game — wild animals
  5. game — a kind of play
  6. game — a match
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. object — an aim
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. tear — from crying
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. tear — from crying
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. prune — to trim
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. tear — to rip
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. perch — the fish
  23. pound — a weight
  24. object — a thing

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