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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: swing · prune · game · fork · net · bound · saw · rush

  1. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a kind of play
  2. game — wild animals
  3. prune — to trim
  4. net — for catching
  5. bound — tied together
  6. saw — the tool
  7. saw — the tool
  8. bound — certain
  9. bound — obliged
  10. swing — music
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. game — a match
  14. swing — to play on
  15. swing — in golf
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. net — after costs
  19. net — in sport
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. fork — in a road
  22. prune — to trim
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. rush — hurry

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