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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. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  2. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  3. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — a measure
  2. prune — the fruit
  3. bass — the fish
  4. spring — the season
  5. prune — to trim
  6. stand — for spectators
  7. field — farmland
  8. chip — to eat
  9. spring — of water
  10. pitch — completely
  11. field — for sport
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. bass — the instrument
  14. chip — for betting
  15. spring — a coil
  16. stand — to bear
  17. bass — low music
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. field — a subject
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. foot — part of the body
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. prune — to trim
  24. pitch — a sports field

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