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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. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  3. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. bay — a part of the sea
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. fall — the season
  6. spell — magic
  7. file — a document
  8. spell — letters
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. fall — to drop
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. staff — employees
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. file — a line of people
  16. prune — to trim
  17. fall — to drop
  18. staff — a stick
  19. spell — a short time
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. arm — a part of something
  22. file — a tool
  23. wake — a trail
  24. staff — employees

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