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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: bulb · scale · bore · court · clip · stem · hide · prune

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  8. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  9. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  18. The ball is in your ________________.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. clip — to cut
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. scale — size or range
  5. court — of law
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. stem — a stem cell
  8. court — of a king
  9. bore — to drill
  10. scale — in music
  11. clip — for paper
  12. bore — to tire
  13. stem — to come from
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. bore — gave birth
  18. court — for sport
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. prune — to trim
  21. bulb — for light
  22. clip — a video
  23. bulb — for light
  24. prune — the fruit

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