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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: last · sharp · court · hand · prune · leaves · craft · stick

  1. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  6. The ball is in your ________________.
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. sharp — clever
  4. hand — help
  5. court — of law
  6. court — for sport
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. last — to go on
  9. prune — to trim
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. hand — in cards
  12. last — finally
  13. court — of a king
  14. craft — a skill
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. prune — to trim
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. last — final
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. craft — boats
  24. craft — a handicraft

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