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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. prune — to trim
  4. rock — music
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. current — electric
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. current — happening now
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. prune — to trim
  11. snap — to speak sharply
  12. cold — not warm
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. current — of water
  15. fine — high quality
  16. snap — to click
  17. cold — an illness
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. rock — a stone
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. fine — all right
  23. ball — a great time
  24. ball — a dance

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