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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. tear — from crying
  4. bass — the fish
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. prune — to trim
  8. sharp — clever
  9. tear — to rip
  10. rule — a law
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. can — to be able to
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. row — to paddle
  15. jam — a tight spot
  16. can — a tin
  17. jam — in traffic
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. rule — government
  20. tear — from crying
  21. bass — low music
  22. prune — to trim
  23. can — a tin
  24. sharp — exactly

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