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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  21. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  22. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. land — ground
  3. chip — to eat
  4. rule — government
  5. pit — in a race
  6. pit — a hole
  7. land — to come down
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. prune — to trim
  12. land — a country
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. fall — to drop
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. fall — the season
  17. rule — a law
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. fall — to drop
  21. chip — for betting
  22. fork — in a road
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. lash — an eyelash

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