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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. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. That must've been a ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. mine — for digging
  4. rush — a thrill
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. land — to come down
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. prune — to trim
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. rush — to hurry
  14. scale — size or range
  15. land — ground
  16. scale — in music
  17. lean — to rest against
  18. rush — hurry
  19. lean — to bend
  20. lean — thin
  21. land — a country
  22. chair — a leader
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. mine — belonging to me

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