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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. I'll take my ________________ from you.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. prune — to trim
  3. cue — a signal
  4. land — a country
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. swing — music
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. cue — for pool
  9. rest — a break
  10. land — ground
  11. rest — what's left
  12. land — to come down
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. swing — in golf
  17. perch — the fish
  18. rest — what's left
  19. mine — for digging
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. prune — to trim
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. cue — a hint

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