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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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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: object · kid · prune · lash · chair · lie · row · cell

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. object — an aim
  3. kid — child
  4. object — a thing
  5. cell — in biology
  6. prune — to trim
  7. prune — to trim
  8. cell — a phone
  9. lie — to recline
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. chair — a leader
  15. row — to paddle
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. kid — to tease
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. row — a line
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. cell — in a prison

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