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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. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. snap — to click
  3. track — a song
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. prune — to trim
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. cell — a phone
  10. charge — electricity
  11. charge — in control
  12. field — farmland
  13. bulb — for light
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. field — for sport
  16. charge — a price
  17. cell — in biology
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. prune — to trim
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. track — to keep track
  22. bulb — for light
  23. track — a path
  24. patient — a sick person

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