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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  3. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. trunk — of a car
  3. suit — in cards
  4. suit — to fit
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. prune — to trim
  7. lean — thin
  8. fine — all right
  9. fine — high quality
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. saw — the tool
  12. lean — to bend
  13. cold — not warm
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. prune — to trim
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. saw — the tool
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. cold — an illness
  22. suit — clothes
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — moving air

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