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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: kick · bat · prune · club · perch · chest · firm · lean

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. kick — in football
  3. lean — to rest against
  4. lean — to bend
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. perch — the fish
  7. bat — for baseball
  8. firm — steady
  9. firm — a company
  10. club — a group
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. chest — of your body
  13. club — for dancing
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. chest — a box
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. prune — to trim
  19. prune — to trim
  20. bat — the animal
  21. lean — thin
  22. firm — decided
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. chest — of your body

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