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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 116 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: kid · land · last · lean · prune · pop · can · kick

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. We're almost out of ________________.
  10. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  11. False peace will not ________________.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. When are we going to ________________?
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. prune — to trim
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. land — ground
  6. last — finally
  7. pop — to visit
  8. last — final
  9. pop — soda
  10. kick — in football
  11. last — to go on
  12. pop — music
  13. can — a tin
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. can — a tin
  17. lean — thin
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. can — to be able to
  20. land — to come down
  21. kid — child
  22. land — a country
  23. lean — to bend
  24. kid — to tease

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