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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  4. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. We're almost out of ________________.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. There's no middle ________________.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  14. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  15. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. safe — out of danger
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. cold — not warm
  7. pop — soda
  8. rush — hurry
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. ground — a position
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. pop — music
  13. ground — crushed
  14. trunk — of an elephant
  15. rush — to hurry
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. ground — the earth
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. prune — to trim
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. pop — to visit
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. cold — an illness

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