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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. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. The ________________ market has crashed.
  5. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  16. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. stock — goods
  3. squash — to crush
  4. stock — shares
  5. fork — a garden tool
  6. prune — to trim
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. saw — the tool
  9. saw — the tool
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. kid — child
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. squash — the vegetable
  16. stock — a soup base
  17. fork — in a road
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. squash — the sport
  23. sharp — clever
  24. kid — to tease

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