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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 116 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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. prune — to trim
  3. mark — a grade
  4. cell — in biology
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. mark — to pay attention
  7. cell — a phone
  8. club — for dancing
  9. row — a line
  10. row — to paddle
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. spell — letters
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. spell — a short time
  16. mark — a trace
  17. lean — to bend
  18. club — a group
  19. prune — to trim
  20. club — for golf
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. spell — magic
  24. patient — a sick person

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