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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 116 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. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. This piece is in a major ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. prune — to trim
  3. key — the most important part
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. key — in music
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. march — the month
  10. stem — to come from
  11. bat — the animal
  12. sharp — clever
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. bulb — for light
  16. prune — to trim
  17. march — music
  18. present — a gift
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bulb — for light
  21. key — for a lock
  22. march — the month
  23. stem — a stem cell
  24. present — there

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