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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: chair · lash · kid · snap · prune · key · mug · squash

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. This piece is in a major ________________.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Where did you ________________ them?
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. mug — a cup
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. key — in music
  6. prune — to trim
  7. prune — to trim
  8. mug — to rob
  9. chair — a leader
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. kid — child
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. snap — to click
  16. squash — to crush
  17. kid — to tease
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. squash — the sport
  20. key — the most important part
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. key — for a lock

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