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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. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  10. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  15. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — to crush
  2. prune — to trim
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. club — for golf
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. ground — crushed
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. trunk — of a car
  10. squash — the sport
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. prune — to trim
  13. perch — the fish
  14. foot — the bottom
  15. perch — for a bird
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. ground — the earth
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. club — a group
  20. club — for dancing
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. ground — a position
  23. foot — a measure
  24. foot — part of the body

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