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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 cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  8. The tickets are free of ________________.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  19. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. rock — music
  3. prune — to trim
  4. mate — a partner
  5. lean — to bend
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. charge — electricity
  8. charge — a price
  9. lean — thin
  10. chest — a box
  11. chest — of your body
  12. mate — a friend
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. chest — of your body
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. bass — low music
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. charge — in control
  19. pitch — completely
  20. mate — to breed
  21. rock — a stone
  22. bass — the fish
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. pitch — a sports field

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