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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: row · can · bowl · patient · lean · prune · kid · pop

  1. You don't need to ________________ round.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  15. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — to visit
  2. prune — to trim
  3. kid — child
  4. pop — soda
  5. pop — music
  6. bowl — a dish
  7. kid — to tease
  8. lean — thin
  9. can — a tin
  10. bowl — to roll
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. can — a tin
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. can — to be able to
  15. lean — to bend
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. row — to paddle
  19. prune — to trim
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. row — a line
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. lean — to rest against

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