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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. I'll be taking the ________________.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  21. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. object — to protest
  3. bowl — to roll
  4. object — a thing
  5. march — the month
  6. field — farmland
  7. march — the month
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. tube — a container
  10. date — the fruit
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. tube — the underground
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. prune — to trim
  17. lie — to recline
  18. march — music
  19. field — for sport
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. object — an aim
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. bowl — a dish
  24. prune — to trim

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