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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 ________________ took off on time.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  5. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. field — farmland
  3. pop — music
  4. plane — in geometry
  5. mark — a grade
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. bat — the animal
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. face — to point toward
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. snap — to click
  12. mark — a trace
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. pop — soda
  16. field — for sport
  17. prune — to trim
  18. face — to confront
  19. prune — to trim
  20. face — part of the head
  21. plane — a tool
  22. field — a subject
  23. prune — the fruit
  24. pop — to visit

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