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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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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: firm · wound · plane · root · kid · prune · deal · arm

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  7. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  12. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. kid — child
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. wound — an injury
  5. prune — to trim
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. firm — decided
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. plane — a tool
  11. deal — an agreement
  12. firm — a company
  13. kid — to tease
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. prune — to trim
  17. root — of a plant
  18. firm — steady
  19. root — the cause
  20. deal — to handle
  21. root — of a word
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. plane — in geometry
  24. wound — an injury

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