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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: kid · lean · spring · prune · stick · object · root · fork

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  14. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  15. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. object — a thing
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. spring — a coil
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. root — the cause
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. prune — to trim
  11. fork — in a road
  12. kid — to tease
  13. root — of a plant
  14. object — an aim
  15. fork — a garden tool
  16. lean — thin
  17. object — to protest
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. root — of a word
  21. prune — to trim
  22. kid — child
  23. spring — of water
  24. spring — the season

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