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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 120 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. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  11. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  12. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. bound — obliged
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. cue — a signal
  4. kid — to tease
  5. clip — to cut
  6. clip — a video
  7. clip — for paper
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. lean — thin
  10. cue — for pool
  11. cue — a hint
  12. pit — a fruit stone
  13. lean — to bend
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. bound — tied together
  17. prune — to trim
  18. kid — child
  19. prune — to trim
  20. bound — certain
  21. bulb — for light
  22. pit — a hole
  23. bulb — for light
  24. pit — in a race

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