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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 120 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: pound · bat · kid · calf · lie · prune · squash · root

  1. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  7. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. He had ________________ pain while walking.

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

Answer key

  1. pound — for dogs
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. squash — the sport
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. lie — to recline
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. pound — a weight
  10. prune — to trim
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. root — the cause
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. squash — to crush
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. root — of a plant
  17. bat — the animal
  18. kid — child
  19. root — of a word
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. prune — to trim
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. kid — to tease
  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