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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: lean · field · current · prune · hand · spring · pit · kid

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. prune — to trim
  3. pit — in a race
  4. current — of water
  5. spring — the season
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. kid — to tease
  8. field — farmland
  9. current — happening now
  10. prune — to trim
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. kid — child
  13. lean — thin
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. hand — in cards
  16. pit — a hole
  17. field — for sport
  18. current — electric
  19. spring — of water
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. hand — help
  22. lean — to bend
  23. field — a subject
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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