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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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Word bank
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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: tube · lean · calf · court · cold · mug · nail · prune

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. I'll be taking the ________________.
  11. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  20. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. prune — to trim
  3. calf — a young animal
  4. court — for sport
  5. mug — to rob
  6. mug — a face
  7. lean — thin
  8. lean — to bend
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. tube — the underground
  11. mug — a cup
  12. cold — not warm
  13. court — of a king
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. tube — a container
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. tube — in a tire
  21. cold — an illness
  22. prune — to trim
  23. court — of law
  24. cold — the Cold War

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