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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 120 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: prune · land · club · bowl · season · safe · fan · pitcher

  1. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. land — a country
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. season — in sport
  4. land — ground
  5. club — for golf
  6. prune — to trim
  7. safe — out of danger
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. season — of the year
  11. club — for dancing
  12. safe — out of danger
  13. land — to come down
  14. prune — to trim
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. club — a group
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. bowl — a football final
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. bowl — to roll

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