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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: season · object · roll · hide · spell · cold · track · prune

  1. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. We're on a ________________ here.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. cold — an illness
  3. track — to keep track
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. spell — a short time
  6. roll — a cake
  7. roll — on a roll
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. cold — not warm
  10. prune — to trim
  11. spell — magic
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. track — a path
  14. roll — a list
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. prune — to trim
  17. season — in sport
  18. object — to protest
  19. track — a song
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. season — of the year
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. object — a thing
  24. object — an aim

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