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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  10. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  11. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  15. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. scale — size or range
  3. present — the time now
  4. scale — in music
  5. rock — music
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. field — farmland
  9. bear — to put up with
  10. present — a gift
  11. chair — to sit on
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. prune — to trim
  14. wax — in the ear
  15. present — there
  16. bear — the animal
  17. wax — for sculpting
  18. rock — a stone
  19. chair — a leader
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. prune — to trim
  22. wax — to grow
  23. bear — the animal
  24. field — a subject

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