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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 120 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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. When are we going to ________________?
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  16. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. land — to come down
  3. last — to go on
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. tear — from crying
  6. prune — to trim
  7. tear — to rip
  8. vault — an arched ceiling
  9. track — a song
  10. press — a publisher
  11. last — finally
  12. land — ground
  13. land — a country
  14. prune — to trim
  15. vault — a safe
  16. vault — in gymnastics
  17. track — a path
  18. track — to keep track
  19. press — newspapers
  20. press — to push
  21. season — in sport
  22. tear — from crying
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. last — final

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