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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: safe · clip · coach · hide · mouse · bay · kid · prune

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  24. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. mouse — for a computer
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. kid — to tease
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. clip — a video
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. clip — to cut
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. prune — to trim
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. clip — for paper
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. kid — child
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. safe — a strongbox
  24. bay — a part of the sea

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