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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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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: kick · straw · bore · mine · date · capital · prune · rule

  1. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. straw — dry grass
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. prune — to trim
  7. bore — to drill
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. rule — to rule out
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. prune — to trim
  12. rule — a law
  13. capital — money
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. capital — a city
  16. capital — a big letter
  17. date — the fruit
  18. bore — to tire
  19. rule — government
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. mine — for digging
  24. date — on the calendar

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