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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. He is an ace ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. key — for a lock
  3. fine — high quality
  4. key — in music
  5. race — the arms race
  6. key — the most important part
  7. file — a line of people
  8. content — the amount
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. pit — in a race
  11. fine — all right
  12. prune — to trim
  13. content — happy
  14. pitcher — in baseball
  15. file — a document
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. race — humankind
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. pit — a hole
  23. file — a tool
  24. race — a contest

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