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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.

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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: tube · sharp · prune · firm · kid · bat · band · lash

  1. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  18. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  19. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. prune — to trim
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. firm — steady
  8. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. tube — a container
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. tube — the underground
  15. prune — to trim
  16. kid — child
  17. band — a music group
  18. sharp — clever
  19. band — a ring
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. firm — a company
  22. bat — the animal
  23. kid — to tease
  24. band — a rubber band

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