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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. You don't need to ________________ round.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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. track — a path
  4. pass — a permit
  5. prune — to trim
  6. content — the amount
  7. fall — to drop
  8. spell — a short time
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. pass — to succeed
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. pop — soda
  13. content — happy
  14. spell — letters
  15. track — to keep track
  16. fall — the season
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. fall — to drop
  20. stem — to come from
  21. pop — to visit
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. track — a song
  24. pop — music

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