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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 116 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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  5. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. stem — a stem cell
  3. bound — tied together
  4. pitch — a sales talk
  5. bound — obliged
  6. prune — to trim
  7. last — to go on
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. fine — all right
  10. scale — in music
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. scale — size or range
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — moving air
  15. pitch — completely
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. stem — to come from
  19. prune — to trim
  20. last — finally
  21. last — final
  22. bound — certain
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. fine — high quality

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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