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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. She's very handy with a ________________.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Did you ________________ the button?
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. prune — to trim
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. bat — the animal
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. press — a publisher
  7. saw — the tool
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. rock — music
  12. saw — the tool
  13. press — newspapers
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. last — final
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. prune — to trim
  18. last — finally
  19. press — to push
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. rock — a stone
  24. last — to go on

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