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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  5. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. You don't need to ________________ round.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. prune — to trim
  5. safe — a strongbox
  6. prune — to trim
  7. scale — size or range
  8. pop — to visit
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. field — for sport
  11. scale — in music
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. degree — an amount
  14. lie — to recline
  15. field — a subject
  16. degree — from a university
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. pop — music
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. pop — soda
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. chip — for betting
  23. chip — to eat
  24. degree — temperature

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