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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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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: prune · wound · snap · mug · net · club · court · kick

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  3. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Where did you ________________ them?
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. club — a group
  3. net — in sport
  4. prune — to trim
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. snap — to click
  7. mug — a cup
  8. club — for golf
  9. court — for sport
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. court — of a king
  14. net — for catching
  15. kick — in football
  16. wound — an injury
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. net — after costs
  19. mug — a face
  20. club — for dancing
  21. prune — to trim
  22. mug — to rob
  23. wound — an injury
  24. court — of law

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