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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 124 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. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. tear — to rip
  3. present — the time now
  4. squash — to crush
  5. prune — to trim
  6. squash — the sport
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. spell — letters
  9. kick — in football
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. present — a gift
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. spell — magic
  18. present — there
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. perch — the fish
  21. prune — to trim
  22. tear — from crying
  23. spell — a short time
  24. tear — from crying

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