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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. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. When are we going to ________________?
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  10. We're almost out of ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. wind — moving air
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. land — to come down
  6. prune — to trim
  7. key — the most important part
  8. land — a country
  9. calf — of the leg
  10. pop — soda
  11. land — ground
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. key — for a lock
  15. pop — to visit
  16. wind — moving air
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. key — in music
  19. prune — to trim
  20. pop — music
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  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