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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  23. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. kid — child
  6. ruler — for measuring
  7. cold — not warm
  8. prune — to trim
  9. root — the cause
  10. band — a music group
  11. root — of a plant
  12. kid — to tease
  13. root — of a word
  14. fine — a penalty
  15. prune — to trim
  16. wind — moving air
  17. wind — moving air
  18. wind — to turn a key
  19. fine — high quality
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. cold — an illness
  22. band — a rubber band
  23. fine — all right
  24. band — a ring

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