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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: date · fan · clip · prune · straw · craft · court · bass

  1. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  15. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.

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

Answer key

  1. craft — a handicraft
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. clip — to cut
  5. court — of law
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. clip — for paper
  9. fan — to cool the air
  10. craft — boats
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. bass — low music
  16. date — the fruit
  17. bass — the fish
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. court — of a king
  20. prune — to trim
  21. prune — to trim
  22. clip — a video
  23. court — for sport
  24. craft — a skill

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