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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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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: wind · stem · deal · jam · lie · prune · pop · tear

  1. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. We're almost out of ________________.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  19. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. tear — from crying
  3. deal — to handle
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. wind — moving air
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. prune — to trim
  10. stem — to come from
  11. pop — soda
  12. wind — moving air
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. prune — to trim
  15. pop — to visit
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. deal — a big deal
  19. pop — music
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. lie — to recline
  22. tear — to rip
  23. tear — from crying
  24. stem — a stem cell

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