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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. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the button?
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  23. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. deal — to handle
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. wind — moving air
  5. cue — a hint
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. bear — the animal
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. cold — not warm
  11. cue — for pool
  12. prune — to trim
  13. press — newspapers
  14. cue — a signal
  15. bear — to put up with
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. cold — an illness
  18. chair — a professorship
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. press — to push
  21. wind — moving air
  22. press — a publisher
  23. chair — a leader
  24. bear — the animal

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