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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 116 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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. shower — to wash
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. chair — a leader
  6. cell — in biology
  7. staff — employees
  8. bore — to tire
  9. staff — a stick
  10. prune — to trim
  11. lean — to rest against
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. lean — to bend
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. staff — employees
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. shower — rain
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. lean — thin
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. prune — to trim
  22. bore — to drill
  23. shower — a meteor shower
  24. cell — a phone

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