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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: mark · clip · pound · prune · rock · roll · swing · tear

  1. We're on a ________________ here.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  17. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — on a roll
  2. swing — to play on
  3. swing — in golf
  4. clip — for paper
  5. tear — from crying
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. clip — a video
  8. tear — from crying
  9. mark — a trace
  10. swing — music
  11. clip — to cut
  12. roll — a cake
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. rock — a stone
  15. rock — music
  16. mark — a grade
  17. roll — a list
  18. prune — to trim
  19. pound — to hit hard
  20. pound — a weight
  21. rock — to move gently
  22. tear — to rip
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. prune — to trim

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