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

Word bank: current · mate · rest · prune · cell · last · kick · pop

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. prune — to trim
  3. mate — to breed
  4. cell — in biology
  5. prune — to trim
  6. current — happening now
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. mate — a partner
  9. kick — in football
  10. pop — to visit
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. current — of water
  13. mate — a friend
  14. pop — soda
  15. rest — what's left
  16. last — finally
  17. current — electric
  18. last — final
  19. rest — a break
  20. cell — a phone
  21. pop — music
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. last — to go on

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