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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  8. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Have you found your soul ________________?
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. stand — for spectators
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. mate — to breed
  5. mate — a friend
  6. clip — to cut
  7. clip — a video
  8. sharp — clever
  9. prune — to trim
  10. fall — to drop
  11. clip — for paper
  12. mate — a partner
  13. stem — to come from
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. fall — the season
  16. stand — on your feet
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. stem — of a plant
  22. stand — to bear
  23. prune — to trim
  24. fall — to drop

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