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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 116 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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. shower — to wash
  4. stem — to come from
  5. march — the month
  6. chip — for betting
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. march — the month
  10. march — music
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. chip — to eat
  14. shower — a meteor shower
  15. prune — to trim
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. shower — rain
  18. cabinet — ministers

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