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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 120 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: prune · leaves · season · present · game · tear · cell · fall

  1. He was locked up in a ________________.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in a prison
  2. cell — in biology
  3. tear — from crying
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. fall — to drop
  6. prune — to trim
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. season — of the year
  9. tear — from crying
  10. game — a match
  11. present — a gift
  12. cell — a phone
  13. season — in sport
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. tear — to rip
  17. game — wild animals
  18. present — the time now
  19. fall — to drop
  20. present — there
  21. fall — the season
  22. prune — to trim
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. leaves — to go away

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