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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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. fall — to drop
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. drill — a practice
  6. drill — the tool
  7. kick — in football
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. shower — to wash
  11. chair — a leader
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. fall — the season
  14. season — in sport
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. prune — to trim
  18. fall — to drop
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. shower — rain
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. drill — army training
  24. season — of the year

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