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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: bear · coach · plane · wind · prune · scale · snap · straw

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. plane — in geometry
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. scale — in music
  9. snap — to click
  10. prune — to trim
  11. wind — moving air
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bear — the animal
  14. scale — size or range
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. wind — moving air
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. plane — a tool
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. snap — to speak sharply

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