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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  5. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  20. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. drill — the tool
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. fine — a penalty
  6. fine — high quality
  7. court — of a king
  8. squash — to crush
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. prune — to trim
  11. squash — the sport
  12. fine — all right
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. leaves — of a tree
  15. prune — to trim
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. spell — a short time
  18. court — for sport
  19. drill — a practice
  20. drill — army training
  21. spell — magic
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. court — of law
  24. spell — letters

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