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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 120 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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. mine — for digging
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. stand — on your feet
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. stand — to bear
  8. march — the month
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. fork — in a road
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. scale — size or range
  14. prune — to trim
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. object — a thing
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. march — music
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. object — an aim
  21. scale — in music
  22. object — to protest
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. march — the month

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