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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. spring — a coil
  3. chest — of your body
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. spring — of water
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. prune — to trim
  9. file — a line of people
  10. spring — the season
  11. file — a document
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. net — in sport
  14. chest — of your body
  15. fine — all right
  16. chest — a box
  17. fine — high quality
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. squash — the sport
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. net — for catching
  22. squash — to crush
  23. net — after costs
  24. file — a tool

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