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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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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  4. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  18. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. fork — a garden tool
  4. fork — to eat with
  5. field — for sport
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. prune — to trim
  8. prune — to trim
  9. field — farmland
  10. pit — a fruit stone
  11. mine — for digging
  12. bear — the animal
  13. fork — in a road
  14. bear — the animal
  15. pit — in a race
  16. field — a subject
  17. pit — a hole
  18. prune — the fruit

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