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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. ruler — a monarch
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. scale — size or range
  7. ruler — for measuring
  8. prune — to trim
  9. net — after costs
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. net — for catching
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. prune — to trim
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. sharp — clever
  21. net — in sport
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. scale — in music
  24. scale — for weighing

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