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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: bowl · arm · plane · prune · band · firm · pitch · rest

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  8. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  9. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. firm — steady
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. firm — decided
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. rest — what's left
  8. arm — a part of something
  9. pitch — completely
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. pitch — a sports field
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. prune — to trim
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. band — a ring
  17. rest — what's left
  18. prune — to trim
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. rest — a break
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. plane — a tool
  24. band — a music group

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