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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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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: object · stem · prune · leaves · snap · fan · rule · last

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. snap — to click
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. stem — to come from
  6. prune — to trim
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. last — finally
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. rule — government
  13. object — to protest
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. object — a thing
  16. prune — to trim
  17. object — an aim
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. last — final
  20. rule — a law
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. rule — to rule out
  24. last — to go on

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