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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  16. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  17. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. bore — to tire
  5. prune — to trim
  6. field — for sport
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. key — for a lock
  9. can — to be able to
  10. bore — to drill
  11. key — in music
  12. prune — to trim
  13. can — a tin
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. plane — a tool
  16. key — the most important part
  17. can — a tin
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. shower — rain
  21. shower — to wash
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. field — a subject
  24. wave — of the sea

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