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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: chest · bound · row · prune · present · pop · club · stick

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. You don't need to ________________ round.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  21. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. present — a gift
  3. bound — tied together
  4. chest — of your body
  5. club — a group
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. pop — soda
  9. present — the time now
  10. bound — obliged
  11. chest — a box
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. pop — music
  14. pop — to visit
  15. club — for dancing
  16. bound — certain
  17. prune — to trim
  18. prune — to trim
  19. row — to paddle
  20. row — a line
  21. stick — to attach or keep to
  22. present — there
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. club — for golf

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