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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: date · net · leaves · tear · court · prune · charge · track

  1. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  23. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. prune — to trim
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. prune — to trim
  5. charge — a price
  6. court — of a king
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. track — a path
  11. tear — from crying
  12. tear — to rip
  13. charge — in control
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. date — the fruit
  17. net — in sport
  18. net — after costs
  19. tear — from crying
  20. track — a song
  21. net — for catching
  22. court — of law
  23. track — to keep track
  24. court — for sport

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