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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. I can't ________________ this cold.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. fine — a penalty
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. fine — all right
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. land — to come down
  7. content — happy
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. spring — a coil
  10. prune — to trim
  11. spring — the season
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — from crying
  15. fine — high quality
  16. land — a country
  17. content — the amount
  18. stand — to bear
  19. tear — to rip
  20. land — ground
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. spring — of water
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. nail — for a hammer

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