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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: arm · foot · plane · content · prune · mine · row · wake

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. My father caught me by the ________________.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. wake — before a funeral
  3. prune — to trim
  4. foot — a measure
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. row — to paddle
  8. row — a line
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. plane — a tool
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. content — happy
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. content — the amount
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. prune — to trim
  19. foot — part of the body
  20. wake — a trail
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. foot — the bottom
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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