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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. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a fruit stone
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. prune — to trim
  4. object — a thing
  5. spring — of water
  6. object — an aim
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. pit — a hole
  11. prune — to trim
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. spring — the season
  14. squash — the sport
  15. pit — in a race
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. bat — the animal
  18. tube — the underground
  19. spring — a coil
  20. tube — a container
  21. leaves — to go away
  22. squash — to crush
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. object — to protest

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