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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. This knife is not ________________ enough.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. shower — to wash
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. pass — a permit
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. bear — the animal
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. shower — rain
  14. bear — the animal
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. prune — to trim
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. sharp — clever
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. sharp — with an edge

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