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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 beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  18. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. capital — a big letter
  3. track — a song
  4. board — a committee
  5. fall — the season
  6. pitch — completely
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. kid — child
  10. prune — to trim
  11. kid — to tease
  12. fall — to drop
  13. track — a path
  14. bowl — a dish
  15. track — to keep track
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. bowl — to roll
  18. capital — money
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. board — to get on
  21. fall — to drop
  22. capital — a city
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. prune — the fruit

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