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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. spell — a short time
  3. firm — a company
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. spell — magic
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. prune — to trim
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. mine — for digging
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. firm — steady
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. cell — in biology
  14. spell — letters
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fall — the season
  17. pass — a permit
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. mine — belonging to me
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. fall — to drop
  22. prune — to trim
  23. firm — decided
  24. trunk — of a tree

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