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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  7. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  8. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. field — farmland
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. prune — to trim
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. net — in sport
  7. prune — the fruit
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. net — after costs
  10. field — a subject
  11. spring — a coil
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. field — for sport
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. prune — to trim
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. jam — to spread on bread
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. safe — a strongbox
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. trunk — of a car
  23. net — for catching
  24. spring — of water

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