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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. prune — to trim
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. prune — to trim
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. current — of water
  8. chest — of your body
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. ground — a position
  11. ground — the earth
  12. current — electric
  13. spell — a short time
  14. chest — a box
  15. kick — in football
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. spell — letters
  18. spell — magic
  19. leaves — to go away
  20. squash — the sport
  21. chest — of your body
  22. ground — crushed
  23. leaves — lets stay
  24. current — happening now

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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