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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: land · chip · prune · firm · key · cap · field · tube

  1. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  8. This piece is in a major ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. I'll be taking the ________________.
  21. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. land — a country
  3. chip — to eat
  4. cap — of ice
  5. key — for a lock
  6. field — a subject
  7. cap — a hat
  8. key — in music
  9. prune — to trim
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. cap — a lid
  12. key — the most important part
  13. field — farmland
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. land — to come down
  16. prune — to trim
  17. firm — decided
  18. field — for sport
  19. land — ground
  20. tube — the underground
  21. tube — a container
  22. chip — for betting
  23. firm — a company
  24. firm — steady

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