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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. What do you think of the new ________________?
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  16. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  17. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — ministers
  2. mine — for digging
  3. scale — in music
  4. prune — to trim
  5. rest — what's left
  6. present — the time now
  7. present — a gift
  8. scale — size or range
  9. rule — a law
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. prune — to trim
  13. snap — to click
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. present — there
  17. rest — what's left
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. rest — a break
  20. rule — government
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. cabinet — a cupboard
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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