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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. lean — thin
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. spring — of water
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. cold — not warm
  12. prune — to trim
  13. safe — a strongbox
  14. prune — to trim
  15. shower — to wash
  16. last — finally
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. shower — rain
  19. spring — the season
  20. spring — a coil
  21. cold — an illness
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. lean — to bend
  24. last — final

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