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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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  19. That was a fun ________________.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. The King held a masked ________________.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. cell — a phone
  3. present — there
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. present — a gift
  6. ball — a great time
  7. prune — to trim
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. game — wild animals
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. rock — a stone
  15. present — the time now
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. cell — in biology
  18. rock — to move gently
  19. game — a match
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. ball — a dance
  22. wake — a trail
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. rock — music

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