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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 120 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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  2. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. I'll be taking the ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.

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

Answer key

  1. rule — to rule out
  2. rule — a law
  3. lean — thin
  4. tube — a container
  5. pop — to visit
  6. prune — to trim
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. fork — in a road
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. pop — music
  13. wake — a trail
  14. pop — soda
  15. scale — size or range
  16. scale — in music
  17. fork — a garden tool
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. tube — the underground
  20. prune — to trim
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. rule — government
  24. lean — to bend

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