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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 train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. race — a contest
  4. wind — moving air
  5. race — the arms race
  6. can — a tin
  7. pit — a hole
  8. race — humankind
  9. land — to come down
  10. cell — a phone
  11. can — a tin
  12. prune — to trim
  13. prune — to trim
  14. land — ground
  15. wind — moving air
  16. pit — a fruit stone
  17. pit — in a race
  18. cell — in biology
  19. stand — to bear
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. can — to be able to
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. land — a country

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