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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  10. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  11. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  17. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. When will it ________________ you to start?
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. saw — the tool
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. scale — for weighing
  5. prune — to trim
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. land — to come down
  9. bass — the fish
  10. suit — clothes
  11. suit — in cards
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. bass — low music
  14. land — ground
  15. saw — the tool
  16. racket — a loud noise
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. scale — size or range
  19. craft — a skill
  20. land — a country
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. suit — to fit
  23. scale — in music
  24. craft — boats

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