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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 116 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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. bear — the animal
  4. hand — help
  5. rest — what's left
  6. prune — to trim
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. hand — in cards
  10. rest — a break
  11. prune — to trim
  12. wind — moving air
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. lie — to recline
  15. spell — magic
  16. wind — moving air
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. lean — thin
  19. spell — a short time
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. bear — the animal
  22. lean — to bend
  23. rest — what's left
  24. lie — an untruth

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