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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. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  21. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  22. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  23. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. wound — past of 'wind'
  4. rush — hurry
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. prune — to trim
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. saw — the tool
  11. spring — a coil
  12. deal — a big deal
  13. prune — to trim
  14. pass — a permit
  15. spring — of water
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. spring — the season
  18. wound — an injury
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. wound — an injury
  21. saw — past of 'see'
  22. capital — money
  23. deal — to handle
  24. capital — a city

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