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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. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  6. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. vault — in gymnastics
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. rule — government
  5. vault — a safe
  6. vault — an arched ceiling
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. prune — to trim
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. rule — a law
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. date — the fruit
  14. perch — the fish
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. roll — a list
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. rash — a series
  19. snap — to click
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rash — hasty
  22. roll — a cake
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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