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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 assure you, everything's ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. What do you think of the new ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. fine — all right
  3. scale — in music
  4. land — to come down
  5. current — of water
  6. fine — high quality
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. current — happening now
  11. land — ground
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. perch — the fish
  14. squash — to crush
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. land — a country
  17. prune — to trim
  18. current — electric
  19. scale — size or range
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. squash — the sport
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. cabinet — ministers

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