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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 116 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. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. tube — a container
  4. rash — hasty
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. fall — to drop
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. file — a tool
  9. prune — to trim
  10. fall — the season
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. prune — to trim
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. file — a line of people
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. perch — the fish
  18. fall — to drop
  19. tube — the underground
  20. rash — a series
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. tube — in a tire
  24. file — a document

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