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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. cold — an illness
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. cold — not warm
  5. saw — the tool
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. bear — to put up with
  8. club — for dancing
  9. club — a group
  10. club — for golf
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. bear — the animal
  14. prune — to trim
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. saw — the tool
  18. bear — the animal

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