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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  9. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. I'll be taking the ________________.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. race — the arms race
  3. prune — to trim
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. tube — a container
  6. fall — to drop
  7. prune — to trim
  8. race — a contest
  9. swing — music
  10. kid — child
  11. swing — to play on
  12. fall — to drop
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. perch — the fish
  15. kid — to tease
  16. tube — the underground
  17. race — humankind
  18. fall — the season
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. stem — to come from
  22. swing — in golf
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. stem — a stem cell

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