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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
468
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: coach · prune · fine · field · racket · pass · mine · wound

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. Have you met the new head ________________?
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  21. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. coach — a trainer
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. field — farmland
  5. field — for sport
  6. fine — high quality
  7. pass — a permit
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. prune — to trim
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. wound — an injury
  12. fine — all right
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. field — a subject
  18. pass — to spend time
  19. mine — for digging
  20. pass — to succeed
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. wound — an injury
  23. prune — to trim
  24. racket — a loud noise

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