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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: track · bay · prune · spring · bat · wave · court · club

  1. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. court — of law
  2. prune — to trim
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. prune — to trim
  5. track — a song
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. club — a group
  10. club — for dancing
  11. spring — the season
  12. track — to keep track
  13. court — for sport
  14. club — for golf
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. court — of a king
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. track — a path
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. bat — the animal
  22. spring — of water
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. spring — a coil

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