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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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. rock — a stone
  3. plane — a tool
  4. rock — to move gently
  5. cold — an illness
  6. spring — a coil
  7. rock — music
  8. cap — a lid
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. cap — of ice
  11. cap — a hat
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. cold — not warm
  14. chip — for betting
  15. spring — of water
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. prune — to trim
  21. chip — to eat
  22. spring — the season
  23. lie — to recline
  24. prune — the fruit

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