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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. foot — the bottom
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. wound — an injury
  6. kid — child
  7. prune — to trim
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. squash — the sport
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. row — to paddle
  14. leaves — lets stay
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. row — a line
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. foot — a measure
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. prune — to trim
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. kid — to tease
  24. squash — to crush

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