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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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  6. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  19. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  20. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  21. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  22. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. leaves — lets stay
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. current — electric
  6. jam — to spread on bread
  7. cold — not warm
  8. current — happening now
  9. chest — of your body
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — to trim
  12. chest — of your body
  13. cold — an illness
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. chest — a box
  16. leaves — to go away
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. wax — in the ear
  20. cold — the Cold War
  21. wax — to grow
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. current — of water

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