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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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. capital — money
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. game — a match
  8. lean — to bend
  9. current — of water
  10. prune — to trim
  11. capital — a city
  12. field — for sport
  13. current — electric
  14. lean — thin
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. game — wild animals
  17. shower — to wash
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. current — happening now
  20. prune — to trim
  21. shower — rain
  22. field — a subject
  23. field — farmland
  24. nail — on a finger

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