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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. I can't ________________ this cold.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — to bear
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. firm — a company
  4. prune — to trim
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. firm — decided
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. bat — the animal
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. mark — a trace
  15. prune — to trim
  16. wake — a trail
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. mark — a grade
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. firm — steady
  24. bat — in an idiom

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