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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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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: perch · swing · kid · sharp · fan · prune · chair · pound

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. swing — music
  5. kid — child
  6. chair — to sit on
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. swing — to play on
  10. swing — in golf
  11. chair — a leader
  12. sharp — clever
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. kid — to tease
  16. perch — the fish
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. pound — a weight
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. prune — to trim
  24. fan — a supporter

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