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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: pass · prune · chip · court · field · race · season · press

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the button?
  18. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. season — of the year
  3. field — for sport
  4. race — humankind
  5. field — a subject
  6. court — for sport
  7. chip — in a computer
  8. prune — to trim
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. field — farmland
  11. court — of law
  12. court — of a king
  13. chip — to eat
  14. press — newspapers
  15. press — a publisher
  16. pass — a permit
  17. press — to push
  18. pass — to succeed
  19. chip — for betting
  20. race — a contest
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. season — in sport
  24. race — the arms race

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