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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. My mare is ________________ in color.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. chair — a leader
  5. wound — an injury
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. bay — a horse colour
  8. root — the cause
  9. bay — a part of the sea
  10. chest — a box
  11. stick — to attach or keep to
  12. root — of a plant
  13. date — the fruit
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. chest — of your body
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. wound — an injury
  19. prune — to trim
  20. stick — a piece of wood
  21. root — of a word
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. date — on the calendar

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