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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 cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  12. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. club — for dancing
  6. bass — the fish
  7. club — for golf
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. bass — the instrument
  12. bass — low music
  13. stand — to bear
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. club — a group
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. prune — to trim
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. cell — in biology
  21. game — wild animals
  22. game — a match
  23. cell — a phone
  24. game — a kind of play

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