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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. clip — for paper
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. march — the month
  7. clip — a video
  8. prune — to trim
  9. roll — a list
  10. lean — thin
  11. march — the month
  12. prune — to trim
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. roll — a cake
  17. lean — to bend
  18. clip — to cut
  19. rash — a series
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. bear — the animal
  22. march — music
  23. bear — the animal
  24. rash — on the skin

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