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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  14. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The tickets are free of ________________.
  23. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  24. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. wake — a trail
  3. field — farmland
  4. cue — for pool
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. kick — in football
  8. kick — a thrill
  9. field — a subject
  10. cue — a signal
  11. charge — in control
  12. track — to keep track
  13. capital — money
  14. cue — a hint
  15. track — a song
  16. prune — to trim
  17. track — a path
  18. capital — a big letter
  19. field — for sport
  20. prune — to trim
  21. capital — a city
  22. charge — a price
  23. charge — electricity
  24. wake — to stop sleeping

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