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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. That must've been a ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. rush — a thrill
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. prune — to trim
  5. stem — to come from
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. net — for catching
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. file — a tool
  10. snap — to click
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. band — a music group
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. net — in sport
  15. file — a document
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. band — a ring
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. rush — hurry
  20. prune — to trim
  21. net — after costs
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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