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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: coach · cold · stick · bore · date · prune · calf · lash

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Have you settled on a ________________?
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. calf — of the leg
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. cold — not warm
  8. bore — to tire
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. prune — to trim
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. calf — a young animal
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. bore — to drill
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. cold — an illness
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. date — the fruit
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. coach — a trainer

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