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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 120 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: deal · game · staff · kick · wound · bass · clip · prune

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  19. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  20. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. bass — low music
  3. wound — an injury
  4. game — a match
  5. deal — a big deal
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. game — wild animals
  8. prune — to trim
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. clip — to cut
  11. prune — to trim
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. staff — a stick
  14. staff — employees
  15. clip — a video
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. kick — a thrill
  19. deal — to handle
  20. bass — the fish
  21. clip — for paper
  22. kick — in football
  23. wound — an injury
  24. staff — employees

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