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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  5. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. pit — a hole
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. file — a line of people
  5. root — of a plant
  6. pit — in a race
  7. bass — low music
  8. bass — the instrument
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. file — a document
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. band — a ring
  14. deal — to handle
  15. prune — to trim
  16. root — of a word
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. band — a music group
  19. bass — the fish
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. prune — to trim
  22. root — the cause
  23. lean — thin
  24. file — a tool

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