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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: fall · club · tear · mark · prune · nail · tube · wind

  1. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  2. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — a trace
  2. tube — in a tire
  3. club — for golf
  4. wind — moving air
  5. fall — to drop
  6. tube — a container
  7. club — a group
  8. mark — a grade
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. fall — to drop
  12. prune — to trim
  13. club — for dancing
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. mark — to pay attention
  16. tear — from crying
  17. wind — moving air
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. tube — the underground
  20. tear — to rip
  21. fall — the season
  22. tear — from crying
  23. prune — to trim
  24. nail — for a hammer

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