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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. content — the amount
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. spring — a coil
  7. spring — the season
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. spring — of water
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. content — happy
  13. branch — a division
  14. prune — to trim
  15. prune — to trim
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. row — to paddle
  18. row — a line
  19. bulb — for light
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. bulb — for light
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. kick — in football

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