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

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. board — a committee
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. hand — help
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. wind — moving air
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. wind — moving air
  11. prune — to trim
  12. board — to get on
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. hand — in cards
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. fork — in a road
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. lean — thin
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. lean — to bend
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. calf — a young animal

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