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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. When will it ________________ you to start?
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  11. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. clip — for paper
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. clip — a video
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. suit — to fit
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. prune — to trim
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. suit — clothes
  12. wake — a trail
  13. rash — hasty
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. cold — not warm
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. suit — in cards
  19. wake — to stop sleeping
  20. clip — to cut
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. cold — an illness
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. rash — a series

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