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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  17. He works in a ________________ mill.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  20. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  21. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. pass — a permit
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. saw — the tool
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. shower — rain
  8. swing — to play on
  9. prune — to trim
  10. field — a subject
  11. field — for sport
  12. pass — to spend time
  13. prune — to trim
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. pass — to succeed
  17. saw — the tool
  18. swing — music
  19. shower — to wash
  20. prune — the fruit
  21. shower — a meteor shower
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. swing — in golf
  24. field — farmland

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