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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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. last — to go on
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. prune — to trim
  7. prune — to trim
  8. object — a thing
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. spell — magic
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. last — final
  13. spell — a short time
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. spring — a coil
  16. spring — of water
  17. scale — size or range
  18. spring — the season
  19. scale — in music
  20. object — an aim
  21. spell — letters
  22. last — finally
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. sharp — clever

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