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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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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: board · prune · nail · last · field · roll · swing · chair

  1. False peace will not ________________.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  10. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  11. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. We're on a ________________ here.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. last — to go on
  2. prune — to trim
  3. swing — to play on
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. roll — a list
  6. swing — in golf
  7. roll — a cake
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. chair — a professorship
  10. nail — on a finger
  11. prune — to trim
  12. last — final
  13. field — a subject
  14. field — farmland
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. field — for sport
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. board — a committee
  19. chair — a leader
  20. roll — on a roll
  21. swing — music
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. last — finally
  24. board — to get on

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