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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 had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. prune — to trim
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. wind — moving air
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. bound — tied together
  9. wake — a trail
  10. bound — obliged
  11. swing — music
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. wind — moving air
  15. prune — to trim
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. bound — certain
  18. swing — to play on
  19. craft — a skill
  20. craft — boats
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. kid — to tease
  23. swing — in golf
  24. wake — before a funeral

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