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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 · tear · foot · date · clip · lean · trunk · club

  1. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. prune — to trim
  5. clip — for paper
  6. date — the fruit
  7. lean — to bend
  8. clip — to cut
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. club — for golf
  11. tear — from crying
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. club — a group
  15. club — for dancing
  16. lean — thin
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. prune — to trim
  19. clip — a video
  20. foot — the bottom
  21. tear — to rip
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. foot — a measure
  24. tear — from crying

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