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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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  3. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  4. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. rest — what's left
  3. trunk — of a tree
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. ground — the earth
  6. mark — a grade
  7. season — in sport
  8. season — of the year
  9. court — of a king
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. court — for sport
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. ground — a position
  15. ground — crushed
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. court — of law
  18. prune — to trim
  19. mark — a trace
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. rest — what's left
  24. rest — a break

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