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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 116 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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  23. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  24. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. last — finally
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. snap — to click
  5. spring — of water
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. rush — hurry
  9. season — of the year
  10. kick — in football
  11. ruler — for measuring
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. prune — to trim
  16. ruler — a monarch
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. spring — the season
  20. last — final
  21. last — to go on
  22. season — in sport
  23. spring — a coil
  24. ruler — for measuring

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