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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. kid — child
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. bear — the animal
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. prune — to trim
  9. field — farmland
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. bear — the animal
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. snap — to click
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. bulb — for light
  17. prune — to trim
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. field — for sport
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. kid — to tease

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