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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. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — for weighing
  2. rush — hurry
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. mate — a friend
  6. prune — to trim
  7. mug — to rob
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. field — a subject
  10. scale — in music
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. mug — a face
  13. prune — to trim
  14. field — farmland
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. mug — a cup
  17. field — for sport
  18. mate — to breed
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. scale — size or range
  22. mate — a partner
  23. snap — to click
  24. bark — to shout

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