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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  24. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. snap — to click
  5. face — part of the head
  6. face — to point toward
  7. swing — in golf
  8. face — to confront
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. rule — government
  13. wind — moving air
  14. prune — to trim
  15. sharp — clever
  16. prune — to trim
  17. swing — to play on
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. wind — moving air
  20. arm — a part of something
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. swing — music
  23. rule — a law
  24. arm — part of the body

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