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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.

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: lash · ruler · mine · land · spell · prune · fine · clip

  1. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. clip — to cut
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. prune — to trim
  4. ruler — a monarch
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. land — to come down
  8. fine — high quality
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. mine — for digging
  11. land — ground
  12. spell — letters
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. clip — for paper
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. prune — to trim
  17. spell — magic
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. land — a country
  21. fine — a penalty
  22. clip — a video
  23. spell — a short time
  24. fine — all right

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