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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  3. My father caught me by the ________________.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  16. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. When are we going to ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. plane — a tool
  3. arm — part of the body
  4. bore — to tire
  5. prune — to trim
  6. court — of a king
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. land — ground
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. court — of law
  11. rush — hurry
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. bore — to drill
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. scale — in music
  16. scale — size or range
  17. court — for sport
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. land — a country
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. bore — gave birth
  22. prune — to trim
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. land — to come down

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