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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: capital · mark · field · swing · jam · prune · wound · season

  1. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  10. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. David sat on the ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  18. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. season — of the year
  3. prune — to trim
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. capital — a city
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. capital — money
  8. swing — in golf
  9. capital — a big letter
  10. swing — music
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. field — a subject
  14. wound — an injury
  15. swing — to play on
  16. prune — to trim
  17. mark — a trace
  18. mark — a grade
  19. season — in sport
  20. field — for sport
  21. wound — an injury
  22. mark — to pay attention
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. field — farmland

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