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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 · race · sharp · arm · stick · pop · bat · net

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. It's one o'clock ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. race — the arms race
  4. pop — soda
  5. race — a contest
  6. net — in sport
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. pop — to visit
  9. net — after costs
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. prune — to trim
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. sharp — clever
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. prune — to trim
  17. pop — music
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. net — for catching
  21. bat — the animal
  22. race — humankind
  23. sharp — exactly
  24. bat — for baseball

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