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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 · pound · file · lash · stick · prune · last · stem

  1. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. file — a tool
  3. prune — to trim
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. last — finally
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. last — to go on
  8. stem — to come from
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. file — a document
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. kid — child
  14. stick — a piece of wood
  15. prune — to trim
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. kid — to tease
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. file — a line of people
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. pound — a weight

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