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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 120 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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  13. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  14. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  17. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. prune — to trim
  3. spring — a coil
  4. spring — of water
  5. bear — the animal
  6. wave — of the sea
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. staff — a stick
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. spring — the season
  11. staff — employees
  12. staff — employees
  13. bear — to put up with
  14. rule — to rule out
  15. rule — a law
  16. spell — magic
  17. spell — a short time
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. rule — government
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. prune — to trim
  22. bat — the animal
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. bear — the animal

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