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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. Did you ________________ the meat?
  16. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. wax — to grow
  4. rule — a law
  5. race — humankind
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. spring — of water
  8. spring — a coil
  9. prune — to trim
  10. wax — for sculpting
  11. race — the arms race
  12. season — in sport
  13. prune — to trim
  14. race — a contest
  15. season — to add flavour
  16. wax — in the ear
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. spring — the season
  19. perch — the fish
  20. fall — to drop
  21. fall — the season
  22. fall — to drop
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. rule — government

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