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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. Did you ________________ the meat?
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. She's very handy with a ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. prune — to trim
  3. court — of a king
  4. game — wild animals
  5. game — a match
  6. tear — from crying
  7. court — of law
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. court — for sport
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. pit — a hole
  13. tear — from crying
  14. season — in sport
  15. pit — in a race
  16. lean — thin
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. season — of the year
  19. lean — to bend
  20. saw — the tool
  21. season — to add flavour
  22. tear — to rip
  23. saw — the tool
  24. game — a kind of play

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