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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: bowl · leaves · prune · roll · coach · tear · ball · race

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. We're on a ________________ here.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. prune — to trim
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. tear — from crying
  5. roll — on a roll
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. ball — a great time
  8. roll — a cake
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. tear — to rip
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. race — humankind
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. race — a contest
  17. ball — a dance
  18. tear — from crying
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. prune — to trim
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. race — the arms race
  24. leaves — lets stay

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