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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  13. We're almost out of ________________.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. prune — to trim
  3. scale — size or range
  4. land — a country
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. safe — a strongbox
  7. bat — the animal
  8. land — to come down
  9. land — ground
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. pop — music
  12. scale — in music
  13. pop — soda
  14. pop — to visit
  15. prune — to trim
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. bat — for baseball

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