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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 116 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. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The ________________ went through the wall.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. I'll be taking the ________________.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. march — the month
  3. prune — to trim
  4. prune — to trim
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. kid — to tease
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. leaves — to go away
  12. root — of a plant
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. march — the month
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. tube — the underground
  19. root — the cause
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. kid — child
  22. march — music
  23. root — of a word
  24. tube — a container

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