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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 116 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. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. It's one o'clock ________________.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. root — of a word
  4. root — of a plant
  5. fine — all right
  6. prune — to trim
  7. object — an aim
  8. prune — to trim
  9. sharp — exactly
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. pit — a hole
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. kick — in football
  15. saw — the tool
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. saw — the tool
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. object — a thing
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. root — the cause
  22. fine — high quality
  23. sharp — clever
  24. pit — in a race

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