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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  4. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. We're almost out of ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. leaves — lets stay
  4. content — videos and posts
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. fork — in a road
  7. pop — music
  8. content — the amount
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. content — happy
  11. prune — to trim
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. bat — the animal
  14. spell — letters
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. spell — magic
  17. pop — soda
  18. date — the fruit
  19. prune — to trim
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. pop — to visit
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. fork — a garden tool

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