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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  4. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  10. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  24. This piece is in a major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. prune — to trim
  3. date — the fruit
  4. mark — to pay attention
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. face — part of the head
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. face — to confront
  9. mark — a grade
  10. mark — a trace
  11. land — to come down
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. land — ground
  14. key — for a lock
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. face — to point toward
  17. key — the most important part
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. snap — to click
  23. land — a country
  24. key — in 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