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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
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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: field · jam · hide · row · last · court · toast · prune

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  3. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  4. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  5. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  24. At ________________, we arrived at the village.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. toast — bread
  3. row — to paddle
  4. jam — in traffic
  5. jam — to spread on bread
  6. field — farmland
  7. hide — animal skin
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. last — final
  12. prune — to trim
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. field — a subject
  15. court — of law
  16. toast — a drink to someone
  17. prune — to trim
  18. field — for sport
  19. row — a quarrel
  20. court — of a king
  21. last — to go on
  22. row — a line
  23. toast — the most admired
  24. last — finally

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