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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: fan · prune · leaves · safe · root · rash · clip · mine

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. clip — a video
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. mine — for digging
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — to trim
  10. rash — a series
  11. root — the cause
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. root — of a word
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. root — of a plant
  16. safe — a strongbox
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. rash — hasty
  21. clip — for paper
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. fan — to cool the air
  24. clip — to cut

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