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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. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. chest — of your body
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. branch — a division
  8. cap — a lid
  9. pass — a permit
  10. cap — a hat
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. hand — help
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. prune — to trim
  15. cap — of ice
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. chest — a box
  23. chest — of your body
  24. hand — in cards

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