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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. pit — in a race
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. fall — to drop
  5. cue — a hint
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. prune — to trim
  8. mine — for digging
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. cue — for pool
  11. face — part of the head
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. fall — the season
  14. pit — a hole
  15. fall — to drop
  16. cue — a signal
  17. face — to confront
  18. face — to point toward

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