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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. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  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. cold — the Cold War
  2. prune — to trim
  3. object — an aim
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. perch — the fish
  6. object — to protest
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. prune — to trim
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. fall — to drop
  13. press — a publisher
  14. fall — the season
  15. march — the month
  16. press — newspapers
  17. cold — an illness
  18. object — a thing
  19. cold — not warm
  20. march — the month
  21. press — to push
  22. fall — to drop
  23. march — music
  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