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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. prune — to trim
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. cold — an illness
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. bore — gave birth
  11. bore — to tire
  12. wake — a trail
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. mark — to pay attention
  15. mark — a trace
  16. jam — in traffic
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. bore — to drill
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. mark — a grade
  23. cold — not warm
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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