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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: game · ruler · rash · bay · track · court · pitcher · prune

  1. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Don't do anything ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. That was a fun ________________.
  19. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. track — a path
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. game — wild animals
  6. prune — to trim
  7. rash — a series
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. track — to keep track
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. prune — to trim
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. rash — hasty
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. court — of law
  18. game — a match
  19. pitcher — a jug
  20. court — for sport
  21. court — of a king
  22. track — a song
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. ruler — for measuring

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