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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  16. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. squash — to crush
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. hand — in cards
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. hand — help
  7. last — final
  8. last — finally
  9. last — to go on
  10. cold — not warm
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. cue — a hint
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. cue — a signal
  16. squash — the sport
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. prune — to trim
  20. cold — an illness
  21. prune — to trim
  22. cue — for pool
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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