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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
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: net · jam · chair · bark · prune · pitch · racket · last

  1. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  8. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. net — for catching
  3. last — final
  4. chair — to sit on
  5. net — in sport
  6. last — finally
  7. jam — in traffic
  8. racket — a loud noise
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. prune — the fruit
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. net — after costs
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. last — to go on
  21. pitch — completely
  22. bark — to shout
  23. prune — to trim
  24. chair — a leader

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