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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. The tickets are free of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. prune — to trim
  5. bank — for money
  6. clip — for paper
  7. charge — in control
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. court — for sport
  10. ground — crushed
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. clip — a video
  13. court — of a king
  14. prune — to trim
  15. ground — a position
  16. clip — to cut
  17. bank — for money
  18. court — of law
  19. racket — for tennis
  20. ground — the earth
  21. bank — of a river
  22. charge — electricity
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. charge — a price

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