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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  17. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. straw — dry grass
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. band — a music group
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. object — a thing
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. prune — to trim
  14. object — to protest
  15. band — a ring
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. object — an aim
  18. pitcher — in baseball

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