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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.

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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 · date · can · last · march · saw · foot · chest

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. march — the month
  3. foot — a measure
  4. prune — to trim
  5. last — to go on
  6. chest — of your body
  7. can — to be able to
  8. foot — part of the body
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. chest — of your body
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. march — the month
  14. last — final
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. can — a tin
  17. march — music
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. chest — a box
  20. last — finally
  21. can — a tin
  22. saw — the tool
  23. date — the fruit
  24. prune — to trim

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