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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 116 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: mouse · last · field · stem · prune · bass · wake · court

  1. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  16. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  17. The ball is in your ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the instrument
  2. bass — the fish
  3. field — a subject
  4. stem — to come from
  5. last — to go on
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. field — for sport
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. mouse — the animal
  10. prune — to trim
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. last — finally
  13. court — of law
  14. last — final
  15. mouse — the animal
  16. stem — of a plant
  17. court — for sport
  18. bass — low music
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. field — farmland
  21. wake — a trail
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. court — of a king
  24. prune — to trim

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