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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: root · rush · fine · bat · prune · clip · bear · coach

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. That must've been a ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. rush — hurry
  3. clip — to cut
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. fine — all right
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. rush — a thrill
  8. prune — to trim
  9. bear — the animal
  10. clip — a video
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. root — of a word
  14. coach — pulled by horses
  15. fine — high quality
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. bat — the animal
  20. bear — the animal
  21. prune — to trim
  22. clip — for paper
  23. root — of a plant
  24. root — the cause

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