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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 · pop · fork · bowl · prune · arm · kid · root

  1. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  8. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  14. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  15. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. pop — music
  3. bear — the animal
  4. kid — child
  5. pop — to visit
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. root — the cause
  8. bowl — to roll
  9. root — of a word
  10. prune — to trim
  11. bear — the animal
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. fork — a garden tool
  14. fork — in a road
  15. fork — to eat with
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. prune — to trim
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. root — of a plant
  23. pop — soda
  24. bowl — a dish

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