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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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Word bank
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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: stick · bay · prune · rash · cold · cell · spell · rush

  1. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  6. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. How do you ________________ your surname?
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Take your time. There's no ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — magic
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. spell — a short time
  4. prune — to trim
  5. bay — to keep at bay
  6. stick — to attach or keep to
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. cell — a phone
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. spell — letters
  17. cold — not warm
  18. rash — hasty
  19. rash — a series
  20. cell — in biology
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. cold — an illness
  23. prune — to trim
  24. rush — hurry

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