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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: bat · field · squash · cold · prune · coach · firm · cabinet

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  14. What do you think of the new ________________?
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. Have you met the new head ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. firm — decided
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. field — a subject
  5. squash — the sport
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. firm — a company
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. firm — steady
  11. cold — an illness
  12. cold — not warm
  13. cabinet — a cupboard
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. prune — to trim
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. bat — the animal
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. squash — to crush
  20. field — for sport
  21. field — farmland
  22. prune — to trim
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. coach — a trainer

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