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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 120 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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. clip — to cut
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. prune — to trim
  6. firm — steady
  7. spell — magic
  8. spell — a short time
  9. firm — decided
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. face — part of the head
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. chair — a leader
  14. spell — letters
  15. face — to confront
  16. wake — a trail
  17. dip — to sink
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. clip — a video
  20. clip — for paper
  21. prune — to trim
  22. face — to point toward
  23. firm — a company
  24. chair — a professorship

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