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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 train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Have you found your soul ________________?
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  23. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  24. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — on your feet
  2. spell — a short time
  3. lean — thin
  4. prune — to trim
  5. shower — to wash
  6. lean — to bend
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. mate — to breed
  9. shower — a meteor shower
  10. spell — letters
  11. fork — in a road
  12. race — a contest
  13. mate — a partner
  14. prune — to trim
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. race — the arms race
  17. shower — rain
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. mate — a friend
  21. stand — to bear
  22. stand — for spectators
  23. spell — magic
  24. race — humankind

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