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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  4. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. spring — the season
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. current — electric
  5. spring — a coil
  6. rule — a law
  7. scale — size or range
  8. scale — for weighing
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. current — happening now
  11. prune — to trim
  12. spring — of water
  13. scale — in music
  14. rule — government
  15. calf — of the leg
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. prune — to trim
  19. wind — moving air
  20. wind — moving air
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. current — of water
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. patient — a sick person

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