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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: rock · kick · pitch · prune · bore · cell · bear · kid

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. He was locked up in a ________________.
  19. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  20. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. kid — to tease
  4. rock — music
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. rock — to move gently
  7. bore — to drill
  8. prune — to trim
  9. kid — child
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. cell — a phone
  13. prune — to trim
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. kick — in football
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. pitch — completely
  18. cell — in a prison
  19. bore — gave birth
  20. bore — to tire
  21. bear — the animal
  22. cell — in biology
  23. rock — a stone
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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