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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 116 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: prune · racket · calf · land · kid · kick · root · cap

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  11. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. When are we going to ________________?
  15. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. prune — to trim
  4. kid — to tease
  5. root — of a word
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. calf — of the leg
  8. prune — to trim
  9. kick — in football
  10. racket — a loud noise
  11. cap — a hat
  12. root — of a plant
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. land — to come down
  15. cap — a lid
  16. kid — child
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. root — the cause
  19. land — ground
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. land — a country
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. cap — of ice

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