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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: staff · field · game · date · mug · racket · prune · net

  1. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. Where did you ________________ them?
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. staff — employees
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. staff — a stick
  6. field — for sport
  7. date — the fruit
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. net — for catching
  10. mug — a face
  11. field — farmland
  12. prune — to trim
  13. mug — to rob
  14. mug — a cup
  15. racket — a loud noise
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. prune — to trim
  18. staff — employees
  19. net — after costs
  20. net — in sport
  21. field — a subject
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. game — a match
  24. game — wild animals

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