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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. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. The tickets are free of ________________.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. spring — of water
  4. trunk — of a car
  5. charge — electricity
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. charge — a price
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. date — the fruit
  11. trunk — of an elephant
  12. stem — to come from
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. charge — in control
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. prune — to trim
  19. rule — a law
  20. prune — to trim
  21. rule — government
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. spring — the season
  24. spring — a coil

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