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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. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  24. My father caught me by the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. jam — to spread on bread
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. prune — to trim
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. content — happy
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. content — the amount
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. jam — in traffic
  16. fork — in a road
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. tear — to rip
  19. tear — from crying
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. prune — to trim
  22. tear — from crying
  23. wake — a trail
  24. arm — part of the body

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