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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 had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  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. kid — child
  2. jam — to spread on bread
  3. rash — hasty
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. prune — to trim
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. rash — a series
  8. wind — moving air
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. fork — to eat with
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. fork — a garden tool
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. fork — in a road
  19. prune — to trim
  20. wind — moving air
  21. jam — a tight spot
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. rash — on the skin
  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