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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  23. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. spell — a short time
  5. rash — a series
  6. stem — to come from
  7. prune — to trim
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. foot — part of the body
  11. rule — a law
  12. spell — letters
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. rash — hasty
  17. foot — the bottom
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. rule — government
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. branch — a division
  22. spell — magic
  23. snap — to snap out of it
  24. foot — a measure

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