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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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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: prune · bear · hand · lean · rule · bat · content · rash

  1. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  11. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. lean — to bend
  3. bat — the animal
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. prune — to trim
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. bear — the animal
  8. lean — thin
  9. rule — a law
  10. content — videos and posts
  11. content — the amount
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. bear — the animal
  14. hand — in cards
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. rash — hasty
  17. hand — help
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rule — government
  22. rash — a series
  23. content — happy
  24. prune — to trim

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