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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. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. You don't need to ________________ round.
  16. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  21. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. prune — to trim
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. field — a subject
  6. file — a tool
  7. field — for sport
  8. prune — to trim
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. row — a line
  11. craft — a skill
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. pop — music
  14. file — a line of people
  15. pop — to visit
  16. prune — the fruit
  17. row — to paddle
  18. ruler — a monarch
  19. craft — boats
  20. ruler — for measuring
  21. kick — in football
  22. field — farmland
  23. file — a document
  24. pop — soda

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