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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. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. Did you ________________ the button?
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. last — final
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. prune — to trim
  7. prune — to trim
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. last — to go on
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. press — newspapers
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. rest — what's left
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. press — a publisher
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. stem — to come from
  22. rest — a break
  23. press — to push
  24. last — finally

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