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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. How do you ________________ your surname?
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. spell — letters
  3. spell — a short time
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. prune — to trim
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. season — in sport
  8. hand — in cards
  9. drill — a practice
  10. drill — army training
  11. season — of the year
  12. staff — employees
  13. spring — of water
  14. spell — magic
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. spring — a coil
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. spring — the season
  20. drill — the tool
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. hand — help
  23. staff — employees
  24. prune — to trim

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