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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. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. prune — to trim
  3. sharp — clever
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. kick — in football
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. net — in sport
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. wind — moving air
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. wind — moving air
  12. racket — a loud noise
  13. prune — to trim
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. wax — to grow
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. wax — for sculpting
  20. net — after costs
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. net — for catching
  24. kick — a thrill

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