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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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. pop — to visit
  6. squash — the sport
  7. pop — music
  8. march — the month
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. row — a line
  12. prune — to trim
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. squash — to crush
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. lean — thin
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. march — the month
  19. row — to paddle
  20. prune — to trim
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. march — music
  24. pop — soda

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