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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. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  15. The ________________ went through the wall.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. When was this ________________ built?
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. jam — a tight spot
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. stem — to come from
  6. hand — help
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. bass — low music
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. last — finally
  11. last — final
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. last — to go on
  14. jam — in traffic
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. bass — the fish
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. hand — in cards
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. temple — a place of worship
  24. prune — to trim

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