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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 116 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
468
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: prune · season · land · pitcher · cell · club · wake · pass

  1. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. season — of the year
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. wake — before a funeral
  7. season — in sport
  8. pass — a permit
  9. cell — a phone
  10. land — to come down
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. club — for dancing
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. wake — a trail
  15. prune — to trim
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. prune — to trim
  18. land — ground
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. club — a group
  22. cell — in biology
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. land — a country

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