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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. False peace will not ________________.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. stem — to come from
  5. prune — to trim
  6. wave — with your hand
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. prune — to trim
  12. chair — a professorship
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. last — finally
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. snap — to click
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. last — final
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. chair — a leader

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