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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. When was this ________________ built?
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. spell — letters
  3. spring — the season
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. spring — a coil
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. pound — to hit hard
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. pound — for dogs
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. wave — a sudden rise
  14. spring — of water
  15. tube — the underground
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. prune — to trim
  18. tube — a container
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. spell — a short time
  22. spell — magic
  23. mine — for digging
  24. pound — a weight

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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