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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. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — to hurry
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. spring — of water
  6. prune — to trim
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. prune — to trim
  10. plane — a tool
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. wound — an injury
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. spring — the season
  15. wound — an injury
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. land — a country
  18. spring — a coil
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. land — ground
  21. kick — in football
  22. rush — hurry
  23. land — to come down
  24. perch — the fish

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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