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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. lean — to rest against
  3. lean — thin
  4. foot — a measure
  5. roll — a cake
  6. pitch — a sales talk
  7. sharp — clever
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. pitch — completely
  12. lean — to bend
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. prune — to trim
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. stem — to come from
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. roll — a list
  22. foot — part of the body
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. coach — pulled by horses

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