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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The ________________ took off on time.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  19. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. plane — an aircraft
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. club — a group
  5. land — a country
  6. land — ground
  7. scale — in music
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. prune — to trim
  11. cold — an illness
  12. prune — to trim
  13. land — to come down
  14. club — for golf
  15. scale — size or range
  16. stand — to bear
  17. plane — a tool
  18. stand — on your feet
  19. temple — side of the head
  20. club — for dancing
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. cold — not warm
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. cold — the Cold War

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