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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  4. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  5. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. board — to get on
  3. pound — for dogs
  4. track — a song
  5. calf — a young animal
  6. prune — to trim
  7. snap — to click
  8. clip — for paper
  9. clip — to cut
  10. clip — a video
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. board — a committee
  14. ground — crushed
  15. track — to keep track
  16. ground — the earth
  17. track — a path
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. pound — a weight
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. ground — a position
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. calf — of the leg

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