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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. It's one o'clock ________________.
  2. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  3. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  16. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  17. Have you met the new head ________________?
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — exactly
  2. staff — a stick
  3. ground — the earth
  4. field — for sport
  5. prune — to trim
  6. prune — to trim
  7. ground — crushed
  8. staff — employees
  9. wind — moving air
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. wind — moving air
  13. staff — employees
  14. field — a subject
  15. nail — for a hammer
  16. sharp — clever
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. field — farmland
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. sharp — with an edge
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. ground — a position
  24. coach — a trainer

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