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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 · court · pitch · roll · chip · patient · file · kick

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. file — a tool
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. roll — a cake
  6. prune — to trim
  7. pitch — completely
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. chip — for betting
  11. court — for sport
  12. court — of a king
  13. court — of law
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. file — a line of people
  16. pitch — a sales talk
  17. file — a document
  18. roll — a list
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. kick — in football
  23. chip — to eat
  24. prune — to trim

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