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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. fine — all right
  6. mate — a partner
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. pit — a hole
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. rash — hasty
  12. wind — moving air
  13. mate — to breed
  14. wind — moving air
  15. fine — high quality
  16. calf — of the leg
  17. pit — in a race
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. mate — a friend
  20. prune — to trim
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. rash — a series

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