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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: prune · tear · rock · nail · track · squash · pitch · hand

  1. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  2. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. track — to keep track
  2. squash — the sport
  3. hand — in cards
  4. nail — on a finger
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. tear — from crying
  7. track — a path
  8. pitch — completely
  9. rock — music
  10. hand — part of the body
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. hand — help
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. squash — to crush
  16. prune — to trim
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. tear — from crying
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. prune — to trim
  21. tear — to rip
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. track — a song
  24. rock — a stone

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