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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: kick · game · ball · fan · root · patient · lean · prune

  1. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to rest against
  2. prune — to trim
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. lean — to bend
  6. ball — a great time
  7. game — wild animals
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. lean — thin
  13. kick — in football
  14. prune — to trim
  15. ball — a dance
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. game — a match
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. root — of a word
  22. patient — calm and waiting
  23. root — of a plant
  24. root — the cause

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