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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. board — a committee
  3. cold — not warm
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. cold — an illness
  8. prune — to trim
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. spell — magic
  11. board — to get on
  12. pop — soda
  13. fine — all right
  14. snap — to click
  15. pop — to visit
  16. fine — high quality
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. prune — to trim
  21. spell — letters
  22. pop — music
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. cold — the Cold War

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