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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. file — a line of people
  3. drill — a practice
  4. drill — the tool
  5. file — a document
  6. staff — a stick
  7. prune — to trim
  8. temple — side of the head
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. kid — to tease
  11. stem — a stem cell
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. kid — child
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. race — the arms race
  17. race — a contest
  18. staff — employees
  19. file — a tool
  20. race — humankind
  21. staff — employees
  22. drill — army training
  23. stem — to come from
  24. prune — to trim

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