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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. When will it ________________ you to start?
  4. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. My mare is ________________ in color.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. sharp — clever
  3. suit — to fit
  4. bay — a part of the sea
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. field — a subject
  7. field — farmland
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. game — wild animals
  11. clip — for paper
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. clip — to cut
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. suit — in cards
  16. field — for sport
  17. suit — clothes
  18. bay — to keep at bay
  19. game — a match
  20. clip — a video
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. prune — to trim
  23. bay — a horse colour
  24. prune — the fruit

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