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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  11. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. shower — rain
  3. race — a contest
  4. saw — the tool
  5. dip — to sink
  6. mark — a grade
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. prune — to trim
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. mark — to pay attention
  12. shower — to wash
  13. mark — a trace
  14. saw — the tool
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. race — the arms race
  18. dip — a sauce
  19. snap — to click
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. race — humankind

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