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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  10. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. prune — to trim
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. tube — a container
  5. stand — for spectators
  6. row — a line
  7. tube — the underground
  8. stand — to bear
  9. stand — on your feet
  10. toast — bread
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. prune — to trim
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. row — to paddle
  15. rest — what's left
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. toast — a drink to someone
  18. rest — a break
  19. wake — a trail
  20. branch — a division
  21. rest — what's left
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. branch — of a tree

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