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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. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. The ________________ went through the wall.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. march — the month
  3. cold — not warm
  4. prune — to trim
  5. march — the month
  6. prune — to trim
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. suit — clothes
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. bear — the animal
  12. nail — for a hammer
  13. cold — an illness
  14. fan — to cool the air
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. march — music
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. suit — in cards
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. bear — the animal
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. prune — the fruit

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