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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: prune · mug · chest · season · rule · wind · arm · spell

  1. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  23. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. season — in sport
  4. wind — moving air
  5. prune — to trim
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. mug — a cup
  8. chest — of your body
  9. prune — to trim
  10. rule — government
  11. mug — to rob
  12. spell — magic
  13. mug — a face
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. season — of the year
  17. spell — letters
  18. spell — a short time
  19. chest — a box
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. wind — moving air
  22. rule — a law
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. prune — the fruit

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