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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 124 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 cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  19. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. prune — to trim
  3. deal — to handle
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. perch — for a bird
  6. land — ground
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. bound — certain
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. band — a music group
  12. stick — to attach or keep to
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. band — a ring
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. bound — obliged
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. bound — tied together
  22. perch — the fish
  23. land — to come down
  24. land — a country

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