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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. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  11. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  14. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. The King held a masked ________________.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. charge — electricity
  5. clip — to cut
  6. prune — to trim
  7. spring — a coil
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. content — the amount
  11. safe — out of danger
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. temple — side of the head
  14. content — happy
  15. clip — for paper
  16. ball — a great time
  17. charge — a price
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. spring — the season
  20. clip — a video
  21. spring — of water
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. ball — a dance
  24. charge — in control

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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