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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. We're almost out of ________________.
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. land — a country
  4. pop — soda
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. pop — music
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. pop — to visit
  9. land — to come down
  10. foot — a measure
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. prune — to trim
  15. field — farmland
  16. prune — to trim
  17. field — for sport
  18. land — ground

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