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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: prune · bore · land · stem · patient · swing · bound · pitcher

  1. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — tied together
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. bore — to tire
  4. swing — music
  5. bore — to drill
  6. swing — to play on
  7. swing — in golf
  8. land — to come down
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. bound — certain
  11. prune — to trim
  12. bound — obliged
  13. land — a country
  14. stem — to come from
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. land — ground
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. prune — to trim
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. pitcher — a jug

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