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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: stick · prune · rock · chest · rule · cold · saw · suit

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. suit — in cards
  3. cold — an illness
  4. prune — to trim
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. rule — government
  7. chest — of your body
  8. chest — a box
  9. suit — to fit
  10. rule — a law
  11. prune — to trim
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. rock — a stone
  15. saw — the tool
  16. chest — of your body
  17. rock — music
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. suit — clothes
  20. saw — the tool
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. cold — not warm

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