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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 · patient · last · squash · prune · court · rash · foot

  1. The ball is in your ________________.
  2. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  24. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.

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

Answer key

  1. court — for sport
  2. prune — to trim
  3. lean — thin
  4. lean — to bend
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. last — to go on
  7. squash — the sport
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. patient — calm and waiting
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. rash — a series
  12. squash — to crush
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. prune — to trim
  16. court — of a king
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. court — of law
  19. last — finally
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rash — hasty
  22. last — final
  23. foot — part of the body
  24. foot — a measure

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