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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 116 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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. rush — to hurry
  4. lean — to bend
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. ground — a position
  7. ground — the earth
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. rush — hurry
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. perch — the fish
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. capital — money
  15. lean — thin
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. ground — crushed
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. capital — a city
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. prune — to trim
  23. cold — not warm
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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