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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. mark — a trace
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. season — in sport
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. rash — a series
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. clip — to cut
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. clip — a video
  13. cell — a phone
  14. season — of the year
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. prune — to trim
  18. mark — a grade
  19. deal — to handle
  20. deal — a big deal
  21. prune — to trim
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. cell — in biology
  24. clip — for paper

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