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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. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  2. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. We're on a ________________ here.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  14. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. ________________ games are popular in Germany.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — a monarch
  2. roll — a list
  3. shower — rain
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. staff — employees
  6. roll — on a roll
  7. cold — not warm
  8. cold — an illness
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. ruler — for measuring
  11. prune — to trim
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. board — to get on
  14. roll — a cake
  15. prune — to trim
  16. clip — to cut
  17. staff — a stick
  18. board — a committee
  19. clip — for paper
  20. clip — a video
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. staff — employees
  23. shower — to wash
  24. board — a flat piece

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