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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. game — wild animals
  4. rest — a break
  5. kid — child
  6. prune — to trim
  7. game — a match
  8. prune — to trim
  9. kid — to tease
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. stem — to come from
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. rest — what's left
  19. bulb — for light
  20. rest — what's left
  21. bulb — for light
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. stem — of a plant
  24. straw — dry grass

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