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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  6. She's very handy with a ________________.
  7. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. rush — to hurry
  3. shower — to wash
  4. prune — to trim
  5. object — to protest
  6. saw — the tool
  7. jam — a tight spot
  8. object — an aim
  9. rush — hurry
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. jam — to spread on bread
  12. field — farmland
  13. jam — in traffic
  14. saw — the tool
  15. tube — a container
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. field — a subject
  18. shower — rain
  19. object — a thing
  20. field — for sport
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. prune — to trim
  24. tube — the underground

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