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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: object · field · can · craft · prune · net · last · row

  1. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  12. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. object — an aim
  3. prune — to trim
  4. last — final
  5. craft — boats
  6. last — to go on
  7. prune — to trim
  8. field — for sport
  9. can — to be able to
  10. net — after costs
  11. craft — a handicraft
  12. craft — a skill
  13. row — to paddle
  14. object — a thing
  15. can — a tin
  16. field — a subject
  17. field — farmland
  18. last — finally
  19. net — in sport
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. row — a line
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. net — for catching
  24. object — to protest

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