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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  21. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  22. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. last — finally
  3. bulb — for light
  4. spring — the season
  5. root — the cause
  6. prune — to trim
  7. date — the fruit
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. last — final
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. row — to paddle
  13. root — of a plant
  14. row — a line
  15. spring — of water
  16. spring — a coil
  17. bulb — for light
  18. prune — to trim
  19. march — the month
  20. march — music
  21. march — the month
  22. root — of a word
  23. last — to go on
  24. bulb — of a plant

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