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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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468
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: game · mate · prune · fine · staff · wind · present · trunk

  1. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  17. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. game — wild animals
  2. present — a gift
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. wind — moving air
  5. mate — to breed
  6. staff — a stick
  7. game — a match
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. wind — moving air
  11. fine — all right
  12. mate — a partner
  13. staff — employees
  14. mate — a friend
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. fine — a penalty
  17. staff — employees
  18. prune — to trim
  19. present — the time now
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. present — there
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. prune — to trim
  24. fine — high quality

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