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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. prune — to trim
  3. rock — to move gently
  4. clip — to cut
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. rash — a series
  7. prune — to trim
  8. rash — hasty
  9. cap — a hat
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. row — a line
  15. row — to paddle
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. clip — for paper
  18. cap — of ice
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. cap — a lid
  22. rock — a stone
  23. clip — a video
  24. rock — music

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