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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. scale — in music
  3. ball — a great time
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. ball — a dance
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fall — to drop
  9. suit — to fit
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. scale — size or range
  12. suit — in cards
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. prune — to trim
  15. bass — low music
  16. bark — of a tree
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. bass — the fish
  20. bark — to shout
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. suit — clothes
  23. fall — the season
  24. ball — a round shape

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