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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. spring — the season
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. rule — a law
  7. saw — the tool
  8. prune — to trim
  9. spring — a coil
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. pit — in a race
  12. prune — to trim
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. rule — government
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. spring — of water
  18. saw — the tool
  19. pit — a hole
  20. wake — a trail
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. patient — calm and waiting

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