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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  17. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  18. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. spell — letters
  3. spell — magic
  4. cell — in biology
  5. prune — to trim
  6. tear — from crying
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. rule — government
  9. pop — soda
  10. lean — to bend
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. tear — to rip
  14. spell — a short time
  15. tear — from crying
  16. mouse — the animal
  17. rule — a law
  18. mouse — for a computer
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. pop — music
  22. prune — to trim
  23. cell — a phone
  24. pop — to visit

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