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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: cell · racket · prune · rash · bay · chip · date · roll

  1. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a cake
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. chip — to eat
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. cell — a phone
  8. rash — hasty
  9. roll — a list
  10. chip — for betting
  11. cell — in biology
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. bay — a part of the sea
  14. prune — to trim
  15. date — the fruit
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. bay — to keep at bay
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. rash — a series
  23. prune — to trim
  24. rash — on the skin

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