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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. branch — of a bank
  5. chest — a box
  6. branch — a division
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. foot — the bottom
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. content — happy
  15. bat — the animal
  16. content — the amount
  17. chest — of your body
  18. chest — of your body
  19. bulb — for light
  20. foot — a measure
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. bulb — for light
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. prune — to trim

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