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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: prune · rule · kid · track · chair · land · calf · kick

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  7. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  8. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  19. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  20. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. land — ground
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. chair — a leader
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. track — to keep track
  9. track — a path
  10. rule — a law
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. kick — in football
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. kid — to tease
  15. prune — to trim
  16. land — a country
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. prune — the fruit
  19. calf — of the leg
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. prune — to trim
  22. land — to come down
  23. rule — government
  24. track — a song

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