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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 met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  19. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. prune — to trim
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. race — humankind
  6. fine — high quality
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. fine — all right
  9. rule — government
  10. last — to go on
  11. dip — to sink
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. leaves — lets stay
  14. race — a contest
  15. mine — for digging
  16. rule — a law
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. fine — a penalty
  19. dip — a sauce
  20. last — final
  21. last — finally
  22. race — the arms race
  23. prune — to trim
  24. mine — an explosive

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