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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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468
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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. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. prune — to trim
  5. prune — to trim
  6. chest — a box
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. chest — of your body
  9. court — for sport
  10. cold — an illness
  11. toast — bread
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. court — of law
  15. chest — of your body
  16. cold — not warm
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. craft — boats
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. craft — a skill
  22. stand — to bear
  23. court — of a king
  24. cold — the Cold War

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