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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. prune — to trim
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. pit — a hole
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. root — of a word
  14. root — the cause
  15. prune — to trim
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. fork — in a road
  18. stem — to come from
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. rush — hurry
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. pit — in a race
  23. root — of a plant
  24. fork — a garden tool

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