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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  22. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. rule — a law
  3. mate — a friend
  4. mate — a partner
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. prune — to trim
  7. mate — to breed
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. snap — to speak sharply
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. tear — from crying
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. rule — government
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. tear — from crying
  16. tear — to rip
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. stem — to come from
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. trunk — of an elephant
  22. stem — of a plant
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. snap — to click

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