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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: court · hide · prune · row · chair · rock · staff · kick

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. staff — employees
  3. chair — a leader
  4. staff — a stick
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. rock — music
  7. court — of law
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. row — a line
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. row — to paddle
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. rock — a stone
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. prune — to trim
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. court — of a king
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. chair — a professorship
  20. kick — in football
  21. court — for sport
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. staff — employees
  24. rock — to move gently

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