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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. When are we going to ________________?
  17. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. court — of law
  3. swing — in golf
  4. court — for sport
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. firm — steady
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. firm — decided
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. toast — the most admired
  13. kid — to tease
  14. swing — to play on
  15. prune — to trim
  16. land — to come down
  17. land — a country
  18. toast — bread
  19. swing — music
  20. court — of a king
  21. firm — a company
  22. toast — a drink to someone
  23. land — ground
  24. kid — child

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