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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. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. prune — to trim
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. perch — for a bird
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. prune — to trim
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. club — for golf
  10. club — for dancing
  11. perch — for a bird
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. perch — the fish
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. sharp — clever
  16. kick — a thrill
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. kick — in football
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. stem — to come from
  21. club — a group
  22. lean — to bend
  23. lean — thin
  24. kick — with a 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