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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  3. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. rock — to move gently
  3. chair — to sit on
  4. rest — a break
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. rest — what's left
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. rock — music
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. bound — obliged
  12. shower — rain
  13. bound — tied together
  14. bound — certain
  15. cell — a phone
  16. rest — what's left
  17. prune — to trim
  18. rock — a stone
  19. chair — a leader
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. shower — to wash
  22. cell — in biology
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. patient — a sick person

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