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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Did you ________________ the meat?
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  21. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  22. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. rest — what's left
  3. season — of the year
  4. game — wild animals
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. mate — to breed
  7. game — a match
  8. season — in sport
  9. dip — to sink
  10. rest — what's left
  11. rest — a break
  12. pass — a permit
  13. pass — to succeed
  14. mate — a partner
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. mate — a friend
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. season — to add flavour
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. pass — to spend time
  21. dip — to dunk
  22. dip — a sauce
  23. prune — to trim
  24. mine — for digging

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