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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 116 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 ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  19. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  20. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  21. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. prune — to trim
  3. shower — to wash
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. track — to keep track
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. ground — crushed
  9. shower — rain
  10. ground — the earth
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. last — to go on
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. last — final
  15. track — a path
  16. ground — a position
  17. last — finally
  18. cue — a signal
  19. wave — with your hand
  20. cue — for pool
  21. cue — a hint
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. prune — to trim
  24. track — a song

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