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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  10. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. That was a fun ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. spell — letters
  3. bay — to keep at bay
  4. saw — the tool
  5. cold — not warm
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. spell — magic
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. game — wild animals
  10. stand — on your feet
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. cold — an illness
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. face — to confront
  16. saw — past of 'see'
  17. face — part of the head
  18. saw — the tool
  19. prune — to trim
  20. stand — to bear
  21. spell — a short time
  22. face — to point toward
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. game — a match

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