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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 116 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: snap · face · spring · prune · plane · pitcher · wake · band

  1. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. face — to confront
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. band — a ring
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. spring — the season
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. prune — to trim
  11. spring — of water
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. band — a music group
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. plane — a tool
  17. prune — to trim
  18. face — to point toward
  19. wake — a trail
  20. spring — a coil
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. face — part of the head
  23. snap — to click
  24. plane — an aircraft

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