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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  4. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. chip — to eat
  3. clip — to cut
  4. foot — part of the body
  5. clip — a video
  6. last — final
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. foot — a measure
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. rock — a stone
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. prune — to trim
  15. file — a tool
  16. last — finally
  17. clip — for paper
  18. file — a line of people
  19. rock — music
  20. last — to go on
  21. bulb — for light
  22. chip — for betting
  23. file — a document
  24. bulb — for light

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