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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 116 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. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. How do you ________________ your surname?
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. fine — high quality
  3. pit — a hole
  4. prune — to trim
  5. spell — letters
  6. squash — the sport
  7. squash — the vegetable
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. spell — a short time
  11. chair — a leader
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. lean — thin
  16. club — for golf
  17. pit — in a race
  18. fine — all right
  19. club — for dancing
  20. chair — to sit on
  21. club — a group
  22. squash — to crush
  23. prune — to trim
  24. spell — magic

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