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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. club — for dancing
  4. club — a group
  5. cell — in biology
  6. spell — letters
  7. branch — a division
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. prune — to trim
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. track — to keep track
  12. lean — to bend
  13. track — a song
  14. pit — in a race
  15. cell — a phone
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. lean — thin
  18. spell — a short time
  19. club — for golf
  20. track — a path
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. pit — a hole
  24. spell — magic

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