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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. The ________________ market has crashed.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. stock — goods
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. march — the month
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. lean — thin
  10. stem — a stem cell
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. capital — money
  13. stock — shares
  14. stem — to come from
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. march — the month
  17. can — a tin
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. can — a tin
  20. can — to be able to
  21. capital — a city
  22. march — music
  23. prune — to trim
  24. lean — to bend

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