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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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. present — a gift
  3. stick — a piece of wood
  4. mate — a friend
  5. pit — a hole
  6. prune — to trim
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. pop — music
  10. branch — a division
  11. pit — in a race
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. present — there
  15. mate — a partner
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. pop — to visit
  18. prune — to trim
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. pop — soda
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. mate — to breed
  24. bat — the animal

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