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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 120 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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. cap — a lid
  4. dip — to dunk
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. dip — to sink
  7. net — for catching
  8. prune — to trim
  9. last — final
  10. last — to go on
  11. content — happy
  12. net — in sport
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. branch — a division
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. prune — to trim
  19. last — finally
  20. content — the amount
  21. cap — of ice
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. net — after costs
  24. cap — a hat

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