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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  4. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  5. It's one o'clock ________________.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  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. fall — to drop
  2. prune — to trim
  3. current — electric
  4. fan — to cool the air
  5. sharp — exactly
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. prune — to trim
  10. current — of water
  11. trunk — of a tree
  12. fall — to drop
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. pop — soda
  15. fall — the season
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. pop — to visit
  20. patient — calm and waiting
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. sharp — clever
  23. current — happening now
  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