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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: rush · season · prune · craft · kick · spring · tear · fork

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  15. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. craft — a handicraft
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. rush — hurry
  7. season — of the year
  8. kick — in football
  9. prune — to trim
  10. rush — to hurry
  11. spring — of water
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. tear — from crying
  14. spring — the season
  15. craft — boats
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. season — in sport
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. spring — a coil
  21. tear — to rip
  22. tear — from crying
  23. fork — in a road
  24. craft — a skill

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