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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: spring · date · prune · ball · dip · game · cabinet · field

  1. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. What do you think of the new ________________?
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. ball — a round shape
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. field — for sport
  5. ball — a dance
  6. game — wild animals
  7. cabinet — a cupboard
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. date — the fruit
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. prune — to trim
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. field — farmland
  14. spring — a coil
  15. prune — to trim
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. dip — to sink
  18. field — a subject
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. spring — of water
  21. spring — the season
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. game — a match
  24. game — a kind of play

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