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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 116 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. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  3. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  17. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  22. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. bore — to tire
  3. wake — a trail
  4. prune — to trim
  5. field — farmland
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. field — a subject
  8. bore — gave birth
  9. cell — in biology
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. face — to confront
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. season — of the year
  14. bore — to drill
  15. current — happening now
  16. current — electric
  17. face — part of the head
  18. season — in sport
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. field — for sport
  21. prune — to trim
  22. current — of water
  23. face — to point toward
  24. cell — in a prison

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