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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: stick · kid · tear · prune · lash · cabinet · pit · dip

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. What do you think of the new ________________?
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  10. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. cabinet — ministers
  4. prune — to trim
  5. tear — from crying
  6. kid — to tease
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. tear — to rip
  9. dip — to sink
  10. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. pit — a hole
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. tear — from crying
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. pit — in a race
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. kid — child

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