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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  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. wake — before a funeral
  2. prune — to trim
  3. last — finally
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. land — ground
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. last — final
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. wake — a trail
  12. last — to go on
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. land — to come down
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. prune — to trim
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. fork — in a road
  21. land — a country
  22. deal — to handle
  23. pitch — completely
  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