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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: perch · spring · fall · fine · prune · mark · cell · chip

  1. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  16. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  17. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. spring — of water
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. prune — to trim
  5. fine — all right
  6. prune — to trim
  7. fall — the season
  8. cell — a phone
  9. fall — to drop
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. chip — in a computer
  13. spring — the season
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. mark — a trace
  16. cell — in biology
  17. mark — to pay attention
  18. fall — to drop
  19. fine — high quality
  20. spring — a coil
  21. mark — a grade
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. chip — to eat
  24. chip — for betting

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