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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: mine · march · pit · deal · fall · key · rash · prune

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. pit — in a race
  3. rash — a series
  4. march — music
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. mine — for digging
  7. deal — an agreement
  8. prune — to trim
  9. rash — hasty
  10. fall — to drop
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. pit — a hole
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. deal — a big deal
  16. key — in music
  17. fall — to drop
  18. deal — to handle
  19. key — for a lock
  20. key — the most important part
  21. fall — the season
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. prune — to trim
  24. march — the month

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