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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The ________________ went through the wall.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. rule — to rule out
  4. tube — the underground
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. tube — a container
  9. rule — government
  10. cold — an illness
  11. bulb — for light
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. cold — not warm
  16. prune — to trim
  17. mine — for digging
  18. wave — with your hand
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. bulb — for light
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. rule — a law
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. nail — for a hammer

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