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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. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  21. I can't ________________ this cold.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. lean — thin
  4. roll — a cake
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. file — a document
  8. file — a tool
  9. roll — a list
  10. file — a line of people
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. scale — in music
  14. scale — size or range
  15. capital — money
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. capital — a city
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. lean — to bend
  20. stand — for spectators
  21. stand — to bear
  22. prune — to trim
  23. lean — to rest against
  24. scale — for weighing

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