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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  24. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. prune — to trim
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. last — to go on
  5. date — the fruit
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. prune — to trim
  8. last — final
  9. saw — the tool
  10. spell — letters
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. spell — a short time
  14. bulb — for light
  15. saw — the tool
  16. last — finally
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. plane — a tool
  20. bulb — for light
  21. spell — magic
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. straw — dry grass
  24. saw — past of 'see'

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