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

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. cell — in biology
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. cell — a phone
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. season — of the year
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. ball — a great time
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. net — for catching
  13. ball — a dance
  14. net — in sport
  15. net — after costs
  16. prune — to trim
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. season — in sport

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