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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: prune · craft · ball · ground · fork · bulb · clip · lash

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. There's no middle ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  24. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. bulb — for light
  3. prune — to trim
  4. ball — a round shape
  5. craft — boats
  6. ground — crushed
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. ground — a position
  9. ball — a dance
  10. prune — to trim
  11. bulb — for light
  12. ground — the earth
  13. clip — for paper
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. clip — a video
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. fork — in a road
  21. clip — to cut
  22. ball — a great time
  23. craft — a skill
  24. fork — a garden tool

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