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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. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. prune — to trim
  3. tear — from crying
  4. track — to keep track
  5. rock — a stone
  6. drill — the tool
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. rock — to move gently
  10. file — a document
  11. file — a line of people
  12. track — a song
  13. file — a tool
  14. rock — music
  15. scale — size or range
  16. drill — a practice
  17. track — a path
  18. tear — to rip
  19. stem — to come from
  20. prune — to trim
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. tear — from crying
  23. drill — army training
  24. stem — a stem cell

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