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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  20. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. ball — a dance
  3. prune — to trim
  4. pop — music
  5. kid — child
  6. clip — to cut
  7. pop — soda
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. clip — a video
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. pit — a hole
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — to drop
  15. prune — to trim
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. pop — to visit
  18. season — of the year
  19. ball — a great time
  20. season — in sport
  21. kid — to tease
  22. clip — for paper
  23. fall — the season
  24. pit — in a race

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