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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. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. kid — child
  3. prune — to trim
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. key — for a lock
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. pop — soda
  9. pop — music
  10. kid — to tease
  11. key — in music
  12. chest — of your body
  13. racket — a loud noise
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. foot — a measure
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. pop — to visit
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. capital — a city
  20. chest — of your body
  21. chest — a box
  22. key — the most important part
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. capital — money

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