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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 seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. prune — to trim
  3. cold — not warm
  4. season — of the year
  5. rash — hasty
  6. mark — a grade
  7. bear — the animal
  8. cell — in biology
  9. prune — to trim
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. rash — a series
  12. present — a gift
  13. cold — an illness
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. present — the time now
  16. bear — the animal
  17. cell — a phone
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. mark — a trace
  21. season — in sport
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. present — there
  24. cold — the Cold War

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