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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. last — final
  3. cue — for pool
  4. prune — to trim
  5. craft — boats
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. last — finally
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. cell — a phone
  10. current — happening now
  11. last — to go on
  12. pitch — completely
  13. tear — from crying
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. current — electric
  17. cell — in biology
  18. craft — a skill
  19. tear — from crying
  20. cue — a signal
  21. tear — to rip
  22. current — of water
  23. cue — a hint
  24. craft — a handicraft

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