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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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. We're almost out of ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. prune — to trim
  3. mate — to breed
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. cold — an illness
  6. pop — soda
  7. swing — to play on
  8. pop — music
  9. prune — to trim
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. mark — a grade
  13. mark — a trace
  14. swing — music
  15. mate — a friend
  16. swing — in golf
  17. mate — a partner
  18. rock — music
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. mark — to pay attention
  21. cold — not warm
  22. pop — to visit
  23. rock — a stone
  24. leaves — to go away

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