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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: prune · nail · season · court · drill · chest · ball · bound

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The ________________ went through the wall.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. That was ________________ to happen.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  21. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. drill — army training
  4. drill — the tool
  5. chest — of your body
  6. bound — obliged
  7. season — in sport
  8. ball — a dance
  9. court — for sport
  10. nail — for a hammer
  11. drill — a practice
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. prune — to trim
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. bound — certain
  16. chest — a box
  17. ball — a round shape
  18. court — of law
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. ball — a great time
  21. bound — tied together
  22. season — of the year
  23. prune — to trim
  24. court — of a king

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