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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  14. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  15. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. stand — to bear
  3. pit — a hole
  4. spell — magic
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. pit — in a race
  7. pit — a fruit stone
  8. prune — to trim
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. spell — letters
  13. cue — a signal
  14. capital — a city
  15. cue — a hint
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. perch — the fish
  18. prune — to trim
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. stand — for spectators
  22. spell — a short time
  23. capital — money
  24. cue — for pool

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