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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. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. What do you think of the new ________________?
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  8. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  9. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — to trim
  2. field — for sport
  3. cell — a phone
  4. march — the month
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. can — to be able to
  8. can — a tin
  9. firm — decided
  10. prune — to trim
  11. row — to paddle
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. firm — a company
  14. row — a line
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. can — a tin
  17. firm — steady
  18. field — farmland
  19. march — music
  20. field — a subject
  21. cell — in biology
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. march — the month

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