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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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. I can't ________________ this cold.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  11. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  21. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. wind — moving air
  3. spring — a coil
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. spring — the season
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. prune — to trim
  8. stand — to bear
  9. wax — to grow
  10. roll — a cake
  11. stand — for spectators
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. pit — a fruit stone
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. saw — the tool
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. wind — moving air
  18. spring — of water
  19. pit — in a race
  20. roll — a list
  21. wax — in the ear
  22. saw — the tool
  23. prune — to trim
  24. wax — for sculpting

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