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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  4. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. That was ________________ to happen.
  7. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  16. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. rule — a law
  4. pass — to succeed
  5. fine — high quality
  6. bound — certain
  7. fine — all right
  8. prune — to trim
  9. pass — to spend time
  10. rule — government
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. pass — a permit
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. bound — tied together
  15. chest — of your body
  16. snap — to speak sharply
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. chest — of your body
  19. snap — to click
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. rule — to rule out
  23. chest — a box
  24. bound — obliged

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