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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: squash · hand · bat · root · prune · wake · club · calf

  1. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — the animal
  2. club — for golf
  3. prune — to trim
  4. wake — a trail
  5. hand — help
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. squash — the sport
  8. root — the cause
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. hand — in cards
  11. club — for dancing
  12. calf — a young animal
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. prune — to trim
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. root — of a word
  18. calf — a young animal
  19. squash — to crush
  20. club — a group
  21. root — of a plant
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. calf — of the leg

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