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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  6. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  7. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. face — to point toward
  3. prune — to trim
  4. saw — the tool
  5. leaves — to go away
  6. leaves — lets stay
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. prune — to trim
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. lie — to recline
  12. key — for a lock
  13. face — part of the head
  14. cold — an illness
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. key — the most important part
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. stem — to come from
  20. face — to confront
  21. key — in music
  22. saw — the tool
  23. cold — not warm
  24. cold — the Cold War

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