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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 116 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: leaves · prune · stock · chip · fork · wound · kick · rest

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  4. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  15. The ________________ market has crashed.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  20. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. stock — goods
  4. rest — what's left
  5. prune — to trim
  6. wound — an injury
  7. chip — to eat
  8. wound — an injury
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. kick — in football
  13. prune — to trim
  14. stock — a soup base
  15. stock — shares
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. rest — what's left
  18. fork — in a road
  19. chip — in a computer
  20. rest — a break
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. chip — for betting
  23. leaves — of a tree
  24. leaves — to go away

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