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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: prune · ruler · bound · kid · present · march · net · trunk

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  15. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  16. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. bound — obliged
  3. march — the month
  4. kid — child
  5. march — the month
  6. net — in sport
  7. kid — to tease
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. bound — certain
  10. present — a gift
  11. prune — to trim
  12. prune — to trim
  13. present — the time now
  14. ruler — for measuring
  15. trunk — of a tree
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. bound — tied together
  21. present — there
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. net — after costs
  24. march — music

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