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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: mug · kick · ground · season · safe · cold · straw · prune

  1. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. Did you ________________ the meat?
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. There's no middle ________________.
  18. The water is too ________________.
  19. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  20. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. safe — out of danger
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. kick — in football
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. prune — to trim
  7. mug — a cup
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. season — to add flavour
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. mug — to rob
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. prune — to trim
  14. season — of the year
  15. cold — an illness
  16. ground — the earth
  17. ground — a position
  18. cold — not warm
  19. safe — a strongbox
  20. ground — crushed
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. mug — a face
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. cold — the Cold War

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