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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 ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. Did you ________________ the meat?
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. field — a subject
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. prune — the fruit
  5. field — farmland
  6. season — to add flavour
  7. rash — hasty
  8. rash — a series
  9. stock — goods
  10. season — of the year
  11. rest — what's left
  12. field — for sport
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. prune — to trim
  17. wax — in the ear
  18. season — in sport
  19. wax — to grow
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. stock — shares
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. prune — to trim
  24. rest — a break

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