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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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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: rest · prune · kid · leaves · last · staff · cell · march

  1. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — to go away
  2. march — the month
  3. march — music
  4. prune — to trim
  5. rest — what's left
  6. rest — what's left
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. staff — employees
  9. last — final
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. leaves — of a tree
  12. prune — to trim
  13. staff — employees
  14. kid — to tease
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. last — finally
  17. march — the month
  18. staff — a stick
  19. cell — a phone
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. kid — child
  22. last — to go on
  23. cell — in biology
  24. rest — a break

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