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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. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  12. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  22. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  23. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. sharp — clever
  3. fall — to drop
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. fall — the season
  7. cold — not warm
  8. cap — a lid
  9. face — part of the head
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. calf — of the leg
  12. cap — a hat
  13. fall — to drop
  14. cold — an illness
  15. face — to confront
  16. prune — to trim
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. face — to point toward
  21. cap — of ice
  22. current — happening now
  23. current — of water
  24. current — electric

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