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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: hand · wake · prune · ruler · key · wind · kick · saw

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  8. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  14. He works in a ________________ mill.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. This piece is in a major ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. hand — in cards
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. wake — a trail
  5. key — the most important part
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. hand — part of the body
  8. wake — before a funeral
  9. wind — moving air
  10. key — for a lock
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. wind — moving air
  13. ruler — for measuring
  14. saw — the tool
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. prune — to trim
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. prune — to trim
  19. saw — the tool
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. key — in music
  23. kick — in football
  24. hand — help

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