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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. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  18. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. fall — the season
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. spring — the season
  8. field — farmland
  9. wave — with your hand
  10. prune — to trim
  11. spring — a coil
  12. fall — to drop
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. fall — to drop
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. spring — of water
  17. cabinet — a cupboard
  18. bear — the animal
  19. field — a subject
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bear — the animal
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. field — for sport
  24. cabinet — ministers

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