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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 120 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: band · field · nail · kid · clip · bay · track · prune

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. The ________________ went through the wall.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. bay — to keep at bay
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. track — to keep track
  5. clip — for paper
  6. field — farmland
  7. prune — to trim
  8. prune — to trim
  9. field — for sport
  10. band — a music group
  11. kid — child
  12. clip — a video
  13. clip — to cut
  14. nail — for a hammer
  15. band — a ring
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. band — a rubber band
  18. kid — to tease
  19. nail — for a hammer
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. field — a subject
  23. track — a song
  24. track — a path

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