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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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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: clip · ruler · pit · fan · craft · cabinet · prune · straw

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  21. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  22. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. craft — a skill
  4. clip — for paper
  5. prune — to trim
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. ruler — for measuring
  16. pit — in a race
  17. pit — a hole
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. craft — a handicraft
  21. craft — boats
  22. ruler — for measuring
  23. clip — to cut
  24. clip — a video

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