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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: field · suit · pass · cell · prune · rash · kid · bat

  1. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. When will it ________________ you to start?
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — a series
  2. kid — child
  3. cell — a phone
  4. bat — the animal
  5. prune — to trim
  6. suit — clothes
  7. rash — hasty
  8. suit — to fit
  9. field — a subject
  10. pass — a permit
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. cell — in biology
  15. prune — to trim
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. suit — in cards
  19. kid — to tease
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. bat — for baseball
  22. field — farmland
  23. field — for sport
  24. pass — to spend time

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