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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: ball · prune · chest · fork · snap · foot · rest · rule

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. rule — a law
  7. chest — of your body
  8. prune — to trim
  9. ball — a dance
  10. rest — what's left
  11. ball — a great time
  12. chest — a box
  13. rule — government
  14. rest — what's left
  15. fork — in a road
  16. chest — of your body
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. foot — a measure
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. prune — to trim
  24. snap — to click

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