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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: court · pop · prune · kid · last · mine · staff · mug

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. Where did you ________________ them?
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. court — for sport
  4. kid — to tease
  5. staff — employees
  6. mine — for digging
  7. last — final
  8. prune — to trim
  9. kid — child
  10. last — to go on
  11. pop — to visit
  12. pop — music
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. prune — to trim
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. mug — a face
  18. staff — a stick
  19. mug — to rob
  20. court — of law
  21. court — of a king
  22. last — finally
  23. staff — employees
  24. mug — a cup

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