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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: coach · scale · arm · date · chest · pit · mate · prune

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. pit — a hole
  3. scale — in music
  4. mate — a friend
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. date — the fruit
  8. chest — a box
  9. prune — to trim
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. mate — to breed
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. chest — of your body
  17. mate — a partner
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. pit — in a race
  22. chest — of your body
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. scale — size or range

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