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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 120 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 got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. hand — in cards
  3. pit — a fruit stone
  4. prune — to trim
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. pit — a hole
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. ball — a dance
  9. board — to get on
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. hand — help
  12. stock — shares
  13. pit — in a race
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. board — a committee
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. stock — goods
  18. chest — a box
  19. chest — of your body
  20. chest — of your body
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. wave — a sudden rise
  24. ball — a great time

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