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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: pop · straw · ball · racket · rash · prune · field · mine

  1. The King held a masked ________________.
  2. We're almost out of ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. pop — soda
  3. ball — a great time
  4. pop — to visit
  5. mine — for digging
  6. racket — for tennis
  7. pop — music
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. rash — hasty
  11. field — a subject
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. straw — to clutch at straws
  15. prune — to trim
  16. field — farmland
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. prune — to trim
  21. rash — a series
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. ball — a round shape
  24. field — for sport

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