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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. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. How do you ________________ your surname?
  21. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. spell — magic
  3. mouse — for a computer
  4. stem — to come from
  5. cap — a hat
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. cap — of ice
  8. fall — to drop
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. fall — to drop
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. cap — a lid
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. spell — letters
  21. bowl — a football final
  22. prune — to trim
  23. spell — a short time
  24. fall — the season

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