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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. He works in a ________________ mill.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  11. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  12. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  13. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. bulb — for light
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. date — the fruit
  5. saw — the tool
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. current — happening now
  11. current — of water
  12. mine — for digging
  13. current — electric
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. bulb — for light
  16. mine — belonging to me
  17. plane — a tool
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. saw — the tool
  20. plane — in geometry
  21. field — a subject
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. field — for sport
  24. plane — an aircraft

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