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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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Word bank
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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. When was this ________________ built?
  8. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. cell — a phone
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. prune — to trim
  5. squash — to crush
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. temple — a place of worship
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. rule — to rule out
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. bark — to shout
  16. cell — in biology
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. rule — government
  22. squash — the sport
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. rule — a law

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