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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. prune — to trim
  7. kid — child
  8. snap — to click
  9. season — of the year
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. chip — for betting
  13. kid — to tease
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. chip — to eat
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. prune — to trim
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. wind — moving air
  21. season — in sport
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wound — an injury
  24. wind — moving air

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