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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: stick · prune · fan · bulb · kick · snap · court · bark

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. snap — to click
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. prune — to trim
  5. bark — of a tree
  6. court — for sport
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. kick — in football
  11. prune — to trim
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. bark — to shout
  14. court — of law
  15. bulb — for light
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. fan — to cool the air
  20. court — of a king
  21. bulb — for light
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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