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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. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. chair — a leader
  4. prune — to trim
  5. squash — the sport
  6. kick — in football
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. row — a line
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. march — the month
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. dip — to sink
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. march — music
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. squash — to crush
  21. row — a quarrel
  22. march — the month
  23. row — to paddle
  24. dip — to dunk

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