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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: prune · press · cell · wake · present · race · root · cold

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. Did you ________________ the button?
  8. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. present — there
  3. prune — to trim
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. present — the time now
  6. cell — in biology
  7. press — to push
  8. root — of a plant
  9. cold — not warm
  10. race — the arms race
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. race — humankind
  14. cell — a phone
  15. press — newspapers
  16. press — a publisher
  17. root — of a word
  18. wake — a trail
  19. root — the cause
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. race — a contest
  22. present — a gift
  23. prune — to trim
  24. cold — an illness

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