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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. rule — a law
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. pass — a permit
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. bore — to tire
  8. cell — in biology
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. pass — to succeed
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wound — an injury
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. prune — to trim
  19. bore — to drill
  20. ball — a dance
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. cell — a phone
  23. ball — a great time
  24. rule — government

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