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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: row · prune · bulb · wind · pitch · bark · toast · plane

  1. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  8. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  9. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.

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

Answer key

  1. pitch — a sports field
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. bulb — for light
  5. row — a line
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. bark — of a tree
  8. toast — bread
  9. bark — to shout
  10. row — to paddle
  11. prune — to trim
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. prune — to trim
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. bulb — for light
  16. plane — a tool
  17. pitch — a sales talk
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. pitch — completely
  20. wind — moving air
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. wind — moving air
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. toast — the most admired

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