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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 120 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 · racket · bore · arm · bowl · field · face · temple

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  15. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  16. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. face — to point toward
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. field — for sport
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. face — part of the head
  8. prune — to trim
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. bowl — to roll
  12. face — to confront
  13. field — a subject
  14. temple — side of the head
  15. bore — gave birth
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. bore — to drill
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. bore — to tire
  20. field — farmland
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. prune — to trim
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. bowl — a football final

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