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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 116 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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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: club · prune · object · swing · kid · perch · fine · field

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  16. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. kid — to tease
  3. swing — to play on
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. fine — all right
  6. swing — music
  7. prune — to trim
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. object — a thing
  10. field — a subject
  11. fine — high quality
  12. club — for golf
  13. field — farmland
  14. kid — child
  15. object — an aim
  16. swing — in golf
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. perch — the fish
  20. club — a group
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. field — for sport
  23. club — for dancing
  24. prune — to trim

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