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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: prune · dip · bound · row · foot · lean · swing · sharp

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  13. It's one o'clock ________________.
  14. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  15. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  20. That was ________________ to happen.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. prune — to trim
  3. lean — thin
  4. swing — to play on
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. row — a line
  7. row — to paddle
  8. foot — a measure
  9. swing — in golf
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. bound — tied together
  12. foot — part of the body
  13. sharp — exactly
  14. bound — obliged
  15. foot — the bottom
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. lean — to bend
  20. bound — certain
  21. sharp — clever
  22. swing — music
  23. dip — to sink
  24. prune — to trim

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