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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: deal · key · court · arm · prune · field · row · race

  1. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. My father caught me by the ________________.
  9. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. This piece is in a major ________________.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  20. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. race — a contest
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. row — to paddle
  5. key — the most important part
  6. field — farmland
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. key — for a lock
  10. prune — to trim
  11. race — the arms race
  12. race — humankind
  13. court — of a king
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. key — in music
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. court — for sport
  18. court — of law
  19. arm — part of the body
  20. deal — an agreement
  21. field — a subject
  22. field — for sport
  23. row — a line
  24. deal — to handle

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