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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  21. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. pass — to succeed
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. saw — the tool
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. saw — the tool
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. saw — past of 'see'
  11. field — a subject
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. field — farmland
  17. pass — a permit
  18. prune — to trim
  19. mate — a friend
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. pass — to spend time
  22. mate — a partner
  23. mate — to breed
  24. field — for sport

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