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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 116 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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. That was ________________ to happen.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. When will it ________________ you to start?
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  18. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. object — to protest
  3. prune — to trim
  4. pop — to visit
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. mine — for digging
  7. bound — certain
  8. suit — clothes
  9. suit — to fit
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. bound — tied together
  12. suit — in cards
  13. file — a line of people
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. file — a document
  16. prune — to trim
  17. field — a subject
  18. object — a thing
  19. field — for sport
  20. object — an aim
  21. file — a tool
  22. bound — obliged
  23. pop — music
  24. field — farmland

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