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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 120 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: bay · pop · rush · arm · prune · wound · ball · fall

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. My mare is ________________ in color.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  12. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  13. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. We're almost out of ________________.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  22. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. bay — a horse colour
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. pop — music
  5. ball — a dance
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. prune — to trim
  9. fall — to drop
  10. wound — an injury
  11. bay — a part of the sea
  12. ball — a great time
  13. rush — hurry
  14. fall — to drop
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. pop — soda
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. pop — to visit
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bay — to keep at bay
  22. ball — a round shape
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. fall — the season

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