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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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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: prune · tear · foot · chip · roll · saw · calf · kid

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  8. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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. tear — to rip
  4. kid — child
  5. roll — a cake
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. foot — part of the body
  8. foot — a measure
  9. roll — a list
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. chip — for betting
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. tear — from crying
  14. tear — from crying
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. saw — the tool
  18. kid — to tease
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. chip — to eat
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. saw — the tool

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