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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. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  18. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. tear — from crying
  3. prune — to trim
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. track — to keep track
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. pit — in a race
  11. scale — size or range
  12. snap — to click
  13. scale — in music
  14. prune — to trim
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. track — a song
  18. pit — a hole
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. tear — to rip
  22. tear — from crying
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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