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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. file — a document
  3. march — music
  4. cell — a phone
  5. march — the month
  6. file — a line of people
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. prune — to trim
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. season — of the year
  12. rule — government
  13. stem — a stem cell
  14. rule — a law
  15. march — the month
  16. stem — to come from
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. file — a tool
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. prune — to trim
  23. cell — in biology
  24. stem — of a plant

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