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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 120 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. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. Have you met the new head ________________?
  10. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  24. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.

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

Answer key

  1. prune — the fruit
  2. chest — of your body
  3. field — farmland
  4. chest — a box
  5. prune — to trim
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. rush — hurry
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. coach — pulled by horses
  11. field — a subject
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. field — for sport
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. fan — a supporter
  18. shower — rain
  19. chest — of your body
  20. prune — to trim
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. shower — to wash
  24. snap — to click

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