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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. date — the fruit
  3. rule — government
  4. wound — an injury
  5. wind — moving air
  6. root — of a word
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. row — to paddle
  9. rule — a law
  10. cap — a lid
  11. prune — to trim
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. wind — moving air
  17. prune — to trim
  18. cap — of ice
  19. row — a line
  20. root — the cause
  21. cap — a hat
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. root — of a plant
  24. rule — to rule out

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