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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. prune — to trim
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. prune — to trim
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. swing — in golf
  10. pass — to spend time
  11. club — for golf
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. swing — to play on
  14. swing — music
  15. ruler — a monarch
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. lean — to bend
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. bark — to shout
  21. club — for dancing
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. lean — thin
  24. club — a group

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