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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. He is an ace ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  6. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  7. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. spring — the season
  3. pitcher — in baseball
  4. cap — of ice
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. hide — animal skin
  7. patient — calm and waiting
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. spring — a coil
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. cap — a hat
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. rest — a break
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. rest — what's left
  20. spring — of water
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. rest — what's left
  23. prune — to trim
  24. cap — a lid

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