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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Have you met the new head ________________?
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  12. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. prune — to trim
  3. fall — to drop
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. bank — for money
  6. bank — for money
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. coach — a trainer
  9. squash — to crush
  10. fall — to drop
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. swing — in golf
  13. swing — music
  14. perch — the fish
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. fall — the season
  17. swing — to play on
  18. bank — of a river
  19. bat — the animal
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. squash — the sport
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. prune — the fruit

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