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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 120 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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Did you ________________ the meat?
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. net — for catching
  3. prune — to trim
  4. clip — a video
  5. clip — to cut
  6. trunk — of a tree
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. season — to add flavour
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. cap — a hat
  11. season — of the year
  12. cap — a lid
  13. clip — for paper
  14. rest — what's left
  15. prune — to trim
  16. net — in sport
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. rest — a break
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. season — in sport
  23. rest — what's left
  24. net — after costs

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